Done In
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Done In is a short jingle that usually plays when Kirby (or Player 1, if another character) is defeated, typically as they fall off of the screen. It, like the 1-Up jingle, is one of the most common themes in the Kirby series, known for giving the feeling of a casual error rather than a catastrophic failure. In most games, the music stops abruptly for about a second before the jingle plays, but this method of focus is abandoned in the Kirby Fighters series.
Composition
"Done In" is a short musical period in 3/8 featuring a chromatically descending passage from a C with a jump to E-flat, ending in a somewhat goofy rising G octave. The movement of the melody reflects how Kirby's defeat animation plays out.
Game appearances
Since the jingle has appeared in almost every game in one form or another, this list only discusses the most important evolutions of the theme.
Kirby's Dream Land
Kirby's Dream Land was the debut of this jingle, and is unsurprisingly the most simple version. This version laid the foundation for defeat as a whole in the Kirby series.
Kirby's Adventure
Kirby's Adventure uses a very similar arrangement to the previous entry. (Editors, confirm if identical?)
Kirby's Dream Land 2
Unchanged from Dream Land in both use and sound.
Kirby Super Star
As a SNES game, Kirby Super Star received important hardware freedoms compared to previous games, and upgraded the theme because of it. The jingle gets different instruments.
Kirby's Dream Land 3
Dream Land 3 uses a slightly altered set of instruments, as it did in every other piece of music.
Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards
Kirby 64: The Crystal Shards uses an uncommonly dramatic version of the theme, using very different instruments and a slower tempo as Kirby flops over. The jingle closer to its original interaction is used at the beginning of the game's Game Over theme as well.
Kirby's Return to Dream Land
The first three games directed by Shinya Kumazaki, those being Return to Dream Land, Triple Deluxe, and Planet Robobot, all use the same audio clip for their version of Done In. It features high-quality instruments, but otherwise is only notable for being one of the first versions to be a pre-made audio file instead of being sequenced.
Kirby Fighters
This spin-off series, as mentioned above, puts very little emphasis on the jingle - it's typically played fast and quiet, with no interruption of gameplay or music, so the other players can focus on the battle.
