Just reading the back cover evokes thoughts of Death Note. Death Note also dealt (at least in the beginning) with the systematic decline of society. Interestingly enough, "Ikigami" translated means "Death Paper." However, the similarities are only skin deep -- Ikigami is a completely different. It isn't about an epic cat-and-mouse game that raises questions about morality -- nor is it about killing criminals -- it's a episodic examination of "regular" people who have been given 24 hours to live.