Three Words Kyou Could Never Say
July 7, 2009
Watching CLANNAD: Another World, Kyou Chapter reminded me of a certain music video dedicated to Kyou some time ago. The song used in the video is called ‘세글자’ (Three Words), a Korean ballad, which I don’t think works that particularly well with CLANNAD. I still like the song. What I found interesting was the lyrics, since they were perfect in capturing what I loved the most about Kyou’s character. Here is a translated segment of the song:
Three words that tear me apart
Three words that can never reach you
Every day I write them in my heart
And erase them away with tears
Three words I say to myself
Three words that will never reach you
“I Love You”
Three words that tears me apart
Shall I write these words in the sky
Shall I whisper them to the passing wind
Will you then be able to see
Will it then reach your ears
Three words that tear me apart
Three words I’ve swallowed a thousand times
Three words I will never ever get to say
“I Love You”
I think the love Kyou has for Tomoya is what Wabisabi once referred to as shinobi-goi, where the love just burns in one’s heart as one intentionally never speaks of it to anyone. And that is probably why the tennis scene involving Kyou was my favourite moment from CLANNAD. Kyou chooses to support her sister, despite her feelings for Tomoya, and never confessed to him. As Tomoya carries Nagisa away, all Kyou could do was try to laugh. She tries but she could only cry. How hard must it have been for her all this time, all she could do was burst in tears at the end. Oh well, at least she got to say those three words in another world.
July 7, 2009 at 9:58 pm
I liked how the Kyou chapter chose not to take a singular focus on Kyou, but rather the entire Kyou-Ryou dynamic. It’s a rather CLANNAD thing to do, to focus on that tension between family members.
It’s also interesting to see how in both Another World episodes Okazaki is so much more passive; this could arguably be attributed to not having a full season with him as the protagonist, but I think it also speaks to how much more strong-willed the other female characters in the “harem” are in contrast to Nagisa: in both these one-shots, we see more of Okazaki getting chosen, rather than the one really doing the choosing, which I think ultimately sets Nagisa apart as unique.
July 8, 2009 at 2:41 am
Ah, fitting choice of music. Now if only the singer were female…
July 8, 2009 at 7:50 am
@vendredi
It was wise for KyoAni to include Ryou as well, as that’s what really tests Kyou as a character (choose her love or sister). Compared to this, Tomoyo chapter focused only on Tomoyo and Tomoya if I recall correctly. And you are right about Tomoya being more passive in these alternate versions. As a character, I prefer Tomoya in the original version, but I never liked Nagisa that much anyway so I suppose I should be thankful for his passive attitude this time : D
@Shadowmage
I thinks the lyrics is appropriate, but the music itself hmm, probably doesn’t go that well with CLANNAD, or Kyou. Well, that’s what I felt anyway. Probably would’ve helped if the voice was female though, yea.