Thank you to Netgalley and Kodansha Comics for providing me with this title.

The cover and the artwork is what initially grabbed my attention along with the concept of an orphanage training children at the school in magical warfare. Unfortunately, that is where my enjoyment stopped. While the artwork was beautifully done and there was potential for a really interesting story, I would not recommend anyone to read this. I understand that it was only the first volume but, the plot itself was very lacking aside from a few pages here and there. However, most importantly, my overarching issue is the problematic sexualisation of young underage girls. There is absolutely no need to add to the societal problem of sexualisation of children. The depiction of a nude underage girl towards the end shouldn’t even be legal in my opinion. Additionally, I don’t know what the intention was regarding the character of the nurse but, every single scene with that character was uncomfortable and harmful to the lgbtqia+ community if it was attempting what I assume.

I will not be continuing this series or reading anything else by this author.

It's the cruel anonymity of prolonged warfare that hits you first in I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day. Sure, this is a yuri series with a questionable need for its young characters to kiss each other (more on that later), but our introduction to this world is via the brutal, unfeeling lens of death.

The opening pages of Nachi Aono's first English-published series introduce us to Sheena Totsuki, a middle-school-aged girl who just lost her roommate in a military conflict. We never learn that roommate's name. In fact, every student in this academy is referred to primarily by a numbering system; their names are afterthoughts, more nicknames than anything official.

In this first volume, we never even learn who our students are being trained to fight, nor the name of their own nation. In a distinctly 1984-esque approach, it's simply "us" and "them"—where the "us" is an orphanage of children trained in magical warfare. Deaths are almost daily, occurring with such routine that most of the students are seemingly numb to the concept.

The sorcery on display is reminiscent of I'm In Love With the Villainess, or perhaps Little Witch Academia (minus the brooms and cauldrons). Wands and books abound, but death is only a hairsbreadth away; there are no flashy incantations, but rather a loose, natural feel to the spell-casting.

Shortly after losing her roommate, the vacancy in Sheena's dorm is filled by Mimi Kagari—a tiny girl with a bubbly, air-headed personality, possessed of frighteningly powerful magic that has earned her a reputation as an "immortal secret weapon." She seemingly has no issue with murder or war; a stark contrast to Sheena's continued fear of combat, and her reluctance to take a life.

I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day weaves an interesting romantic dynamic between its characters, letting the audience determine whether the love we're being shown comes naturally, or is the byproduct of close proximity and a heightened sense of mortality. Early on, we're shown that a particularly potent brand of healing exists in this world—namely, kissing can transfer mana between people, and heal anything from a small scratch to a dismembered arm.

As Sheena becomes Mimi's new roommate—and something of a guardian figure—the pair are drawn closer together, and become swept up in something awkward and intimate when Mimi heals Sheena after a training incident goes awry. With her first kiss stolen, Sheena struggles to understand her own emotions—and to reconcile them with the attitude of the happy-go-lucky Mimi.

Final Thoughts

In summary, I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day by Nachi Aono offers a unique approach to the yuri genre, skillfully combining the bleak narrative of a wartime dystopian with the awkward stumbling of youthful affections. Raising more questions than answers, the first volume is an excellent introduction to our characters and their world and is perfect for fans of Darling in the Franxx and Mobile Suit Gundam: The Witch From Mercury.

I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day is available from February 18, 2025 through Kodansha Comics license.

Anime Atelier reviewed the NetGalley copy of the manga.
© Nachi Aono, Kodansha Ltd.

Thank you so much for letting me read this manga. I very much enjoyed this story. It is a little crazy but still very entertaining.

So, I've never dived into mangas before but I did enjoy this. I'm not sure how to go about rating mangas specifically, so I'll talk about what I usually look for in books - characters, originality, enjoyment and plot. I'll also talk about the graphics in this.

Characters: i loved Mimi the most, I loved her cheerful personality and I do plan on continuing this series to follow her story if it continues! Sheena, I enjoyed her as well; I loved the differences between her and Mimi.

Originality/plot: I can't speak about if this is original or not, as I haven't read any mangas before this - however I did enjoy the plot and found it interesting.

Enjoyment: I really enjoyed this, I found it quite quick to read and I really liked having the graphics to understand what was going on. I'll always love a sapphic book, the representation is needed. There were parts I was slightly confused about, although I think that's just because of my lack of manga experience.

Graphics: I loved the graphics! Sometimes I find it difficult to imagine what a character would look like, so I found having those graphics really helped. It was a beautiful manga and I did really enjoy it.

I loved this! What a great introduction to characters, magic and future love story. Also what an ending. I can't wait to get the next volume.

I loved this! What a great introduction to characters, magic and future love story. Also what an ending. I can't wait to get the next volume.

This was beautiful, and I want more. A plot where students are trained up for a magical war doesn’t sound like it lends itself to the gentleness of these characters, but this authors done an amazing job

The artistic style was great, and the soft coming together of both characters was a fun read. Big plot twist (IMO) at the end, so now I can’t wait to read more and to see how the characters evolve.

4 stars because at points the speech felt slightly lacking, but the graphics carried it through.

Thank you to NetGalley for this ARC. The above is a true and honest review.

First I want to say that I wasn’t expecting this to be a futuristic dystopian story! The cover made me believe it would be a cute little romance so that caught me off guard but that in now way impacted how I enjoyed that story. I still enjoyed the plot and I think it’s a cool concept! HOWEVER what definitely threw me off and put me off continuing the series were that the characters are 10 killing in a war AND they use kissing healing magic. That’s a big no for me and that’ll be the reason I do not continue this series.

3.5 stars. I enjoyed this - it was an easyish, fun read. I don’t often read graphic novels, so when I saw this one I was like !!!! Thank you for the chance to read this.

If you are missing Promise Neverland read this.
Is the yuri version but with baby soldier instead of baby dishes.
Can't wait for volume 2

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me an ARC of this book for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Welp, this one is on me for not reading enough about the book before requesting it on Netgalley. Unfortunately it falls into the shitty manga/anime thing of sexualizing underage girls, so that's a no from me.

This one is definitely intriguing, and much darker than this cover leads you to believe. We are dealing with grief over the death of a loved one, new love, paranormal creatures, and a very dark and political world. Will their young love survive? Who knows! Either way, I think I will continue this series for sure.

I was really surprised by how much I enjoyed this story! I am looking forward to reading more from Nachi Aono, especially this series! I've always loved dark academia and that's exactly what this is. Take a chance and check it out.

At first glance, this manga presents an intriguing premise—magical girls trained for war, blending the contrast of school life with the horrors of combat. The story introduces compelling character dynamics, particularly between Sheena, a reluctant fighter with little interest in magic, and Mimi, a seemingly cheerful but deadly prodigy with secrets lurking beneath her smile. Their evolving relationship, alongside well-written side characters like Seiran and Ari, adds emotional depth to the narrative.

However, while the character drama is engaging, the series makes several troubling choices that overshadow its strengths. The biggest issue lies in its use of a "mana-sharing" mechanic, which manifests through kissing—an element that feels more like an excuse for forced intimacy than a meaningful plot device. This is particularly problematic given Mimi’s apparent age (ten), making certain interactions uncomfortable at best. Additionally, the inclusion of a school nurse, possibly a transgender or gender-nonconforming character, who also engages in this practice, plays into harmful stereotypes, further complicating the narrative’s ethical implications.

Beyond these concerns, the manga also features non-consensual kisses between young characters, an aspect that is neither critically examined nor treated as problematic within the story. Combined with its darker themes of war, grief, and loss, the series had potential for a compelling exploration of trauma and survival but instead falls into problematic territory.

The art is appealing, and the pacing keeps the reader engaged, but these positives don’t outweigh the troubling aspects of its execution. While some may find the premise and character dynamics worth following, the heavy-handed use of questionable tropes makes this a difficult recommendation. Proceed with caution.

"I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day" by Nachi Aono is a yuri manga that delves into the lives of girls in an orphanage that serves as a boot camp, training them as magical child soldiers for a brutal war. Amidst the pervasive violence, the story explores themes of love and resilience.

The narrative centers on Sheena Totsuki, a 14-year-old who grapples with the loss of her roommate. Her life takes an unexpected turn when she meets Mimi Kagari, a mysterious girl who, despite being drenched in blood, exudes a cheerful demeanor. Mimi, rumored to be an immortal secret weapon, becomes Sheena's new roommate, and their bond deepens as they navigate the harrowing realities of their environment.

In summary, "I Want to Love You Till Your Dying Day" offers a visually captivating and emotionally charged narrative that explores love and survival in a war-torn setting. Potential readers should be aware of the mature themes and the ongoing debates surrounding its content.

i want to love you till your dying day - MANGA REVIEW
🍰 ARC provided by #netgalley 🍰
rating: ⭐️2

the plot here was intriguing. this school takes orphaned or children from troubled homes & trains them with magic for war. it’s a tad dark of a manga as there is actual deaths. the fmc sees this darkness & seems to be the only one who sees something wrong with what’s going on. her love interest is this adorable girl who actually holds probably the most darkness of the school because she’s the schools “secret weapon” (from my understanding she’s immortal? she gets injured badly but gets stitched back up with magic & she’s like new?). Mimi, the love interest, really likes Sheena, the fmc, but Sheena isn’t too sure about Mimi. they’re stuck together as roommates & Mimi keeps seeking Sheena out.

overall the plot is kinda cute despite the dark themes in the background. my main issue with this manga is that the characters seem pretty young & i felt they were a tad sexualized. nothing extreme & no actual nudity but i just felt it was a little icky the way certain characters were displayed. on top of that, this manga is advertised as LGBTQ+ and the two lead characters are obviously going to fall in love BUT there’s this side character (the nurse) who is basically teased & called awful things because she’s trans. to me, you cannot call a book LGBTQ+ if it isn’t inclusive to all parts of that label.

i think since this is only the first volume, the series may just need more work. i think the art style was nice but i don’t think i would continue with this series.

going into this novel i had no idea what the plot was and thought from the cover it might be like "i want to eat your pancreas" but like girls love, but no. it's about this dystopian world where there is an orphanage that trains these children to fight in the war. we follow sheena who's roommate just died and her new roommate is mimi who is the hidden weapon and very powerful.

i quite liked this volume and i feel like it set up the world very well. i was slightly concerned when something happened between them and i did not know how young mimi was, but they are both 10. i am interested to see what happens next and to figure out mimi more.

My thoughts mirror many of those contained in one-and-two stars reviews for this title, so I am submitting a one star review.

I wanted to love this book so bad. Magical girls, kind of a magic school, and girls loving each other, I was hyped. BUT, even if it's really soft and cute, it is still pretty slow and flat. Nothing much really happens to be honest. If I had to sum up this book, it would be something like "two young girls waiting to go to war and eating rice". Also, a few points really disturbed me. First, Mimi is reaaaaaaaally young I don't really understand how this is a yuri since it mostly looks like a big sister taking care of her little one. Also, how am I supposed to urge them to kiss and love each other when everyone in the school kiss everyone else to give them mana ? Even the nurse, who is depicted as trans / crossdressing and kissing children to give them mana ? How is that supposed to be a good representation and not a big "look at this trans-pedo kissing young girls" red-flag ? Like why does it always have to be depicted so badly... What was the point ? The message behind it ? I'm pretty disappointed to be honest...

I did not finish this. I got as far as the introduction of the trans nurse who was met with slurs and disdain and stopped. Other reviews mentioned that this nurse is a pedophile also? Which I cannot deal with in this political climate right now. I spend too much time at my job hearing people call politicians, who are trying to protect trans kids, “groomers” to be okay with something like this.
It’s too bad because the premise of child soldiers in a magical school seemed interesting.

There was a lot to like here until the kissing magic happened. That was so off-putting, and perhaps it's meant to be? It's always hard with the first volume of a new series, but I do not like to see 10-year-olds sexualized. It's pretty gross to me.