This manga certainly has an interesting concept. That people prize their lives more strongly and truly live when they think they’re going to die isn’t that novel, but that being tied into a dystopian system with the goal of achieving such an effect certainly is. A work where the government arbitrarily kills off 1 in 1000 citizens, I would normally expect to be about fighting the system. And while that does play a part, primarily towards the ending, that’s really not the focus of most of the work. The majority of the manga is a series of episodes that begin by first showing off someone’s personality and background, then showing that person receiving their Ikigami, then showing what they do in the time they have left while also showing the effect that has on others. The main character has a pretty limited presence for most of these, only showing small glimpses here and there that slowly build up to him becoming the focus during the final chapters.
Still, in the end I didn’t feel that much attachment to him or his story all that much, especially compared to the episodes focusing on those that were going to die. These episodes are written pretty well and strangely enough are generally bittersweet. They show that people do live their lives more fully when they know their time is coming to an end, and that often does result in others also improving their lives as a result of the actions of the dying. Despite the completely strange situation that it arises from, while still sad, there is still an element of hope to these deaths. And that is part of what I feel makes the overarching story feel somewhat contradictory in that the final conclusion is that the system is actually something terrible that wasn’t created for the stated purpose. A system that arbitrarily kills people is horrible and obviously does not need an explanation for why it is so and the explanation that such a system could promote the value of life is immediately obvious as nonsensical. Still, having that be the conclusion of a narrative that for the most part was focused on cases where the system did lead to at least somewhat positive outcomes feels inconsistent.
Furthermore, how it pivots from the previous message about valuing life to one about how society is spineless and selfish in that they much prefer the system over pushing for a change they don’t personally benefit from, felt pretty forced. The message very much does fit a narrative about such a society, but considering what the rest of the narrative was focused on it feels out of place. It also felt pretty hollow and superficial, because due to the big twist that happened towards the end and the last line, it felt like the author was reprimanding people for not criticizing society while also making sure not to criticize his own society. The ending itself in terms of the protagonist is satisfying enough, but due to all the other issues with it I didn’t find the ending that satisfying overall. In terms of art, it never seemed bad but never popped out as good either, so the best I can say is that it was adequate for telling the story the author wanted to tell.
