The Connection Between Chikai & Don’t Think Twice
by lazy & afternoon
Over the years, Utada has been involved with the Kingdom Hearts series by creating the theme songs for all of the main games in both English and Japanese. For the latest game, Kingdom Hearts III, Utada followed this same pattern by writing and producing the ending theme song for the game with the Japanese single titled Chikai (「誓い」lit. oath) for the Japanese version along with its English-language counterpart Don’t Think Twice for the International version. For both versions, Utada wrote the songs based off of a general explanation of the storyline of KH3 [1], resulting in a complex and beautiful composition that Nomura states, “has a strength that pierces deeper and deeper into you the more you listen to it” [2].
Chikai and Don’t Think Twice are both love songs with a proclamation of devotion and a desire for lifelong commitment with a significant other. Yet, the songs differ in the ways that the speaker expresses their heartfelt desires. In Chikai, Utada writes about a person who acknowledges the reality of their obligations, but despite their circumstances, this person wants to make a vow to their beloved to be together regardless. Don’t Think Twice, on the other hand, is about someone speaking to their beloved and reassures them that they wouldn’t give their feelings a second thought.
In the past, Utada has written the theme songs with the characters of Kingdom Hearts in mind, and the same can be said with Chikai and Don’t Think Twice. As such, we have interpreted that Chikai is from Kairi’s perspective while Don’t Think Twice is a response to Chikai from Sora’s perspective. In this essay series, we will interpret Chikai and Don’t Think Twice separately with this in mind, and then see how the two versions are connected to each other.
Part 2. To Keep an Oath: An Analysis on Don’t Think Twice
Part 3. Analysis on the Connection Between Chikai & Don’t Think Twice (coming soon)
Over the years, Utada has been involved with the Kingdom Hearts series by creating the theme songs for all of the main games in both English and Japanese. For the latest game, Kingdom Hearts III, Utada followed this same pattern by writing and producing the ending theme song for the game with the Japanese single titled Chikai (「誓い」lit. oath) for the Japanese version along with its English-language counterpart Don’t Think Twice for the International version. For both versions, Utada wrote the songs based off of a general explanation of the storyline of KH3 [1], resulting in a complex and beautiful composition that Nomura states, “has a strength that pierces deeper and deeper into you the more you listen to it” [2].
Chikai and Don’t Think Twice are both love songs with a proclamation of devotion and a desire for lifelong commitment with a significant other. Yet, the songs differ in the ways that the speaker expresses their heartfelt desires. In Chikai, Utada writes about a person who acknowledges the reality of their obligations, but despite their circumstances, this person wants to make a vow to their beloved to be together regardless. Don’t Think Twice, on the other hand, is about someone speaking to their beloved and reassures them that they wouldn’t give their feelings a second thought.
In the past, Utada has written the theme songs with the characters of Kingdom Hearts in mind, and the same can be said with Chikai and Don’t Think Twice. As such, we have interpreted that Chikai is from Kairi’s perspective while Don’t Think Twice is a response to Chikai from Sora’s perspective. In this essay series, we will interpret Chikai and Don’t Think Twice separately with this in mind, and then see how the two versions are connected to each other.
Disclaimer
This is a thematic interpretation of the songs from the perspective of KH fans with respect to the events of the Kingdom Hearts series and as such will contain KH3 spoilers. We are also not native Japanese speakers, so we have mostly based our analysis upon translations. Please take this with a grain of sea salt. Thank you.Essay Links
Part 1. Kairi’s Oath: An Analysis on ChikaiPart 2. To Keep an Oath: An Analysis on Don’t Think Twice
Part 3. Analysis on the Connection Between Chikai & Don’t Think Twice (coming soon)
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