Wonderful news indeed. Its truly remarkable how these games are brought to life on the page through the colour commentary; one can only imagine how many hours were spent pouring over books and magazines to glean the goods. I'm grateful for your devotion to the Master and your skill at putting it all together to create a cohesive whole, as well as your ability to turn a phrase. I do hope the bio bits will continue to flow in the forthcoming volumes, as warranted.

Think it was Florencio Campomanes (FIDE President, 1982–1995) who said something to the effect that a local hero is what will most effectively grow a sports popularity in a nation. I don't know how important it is that they are local, but I do believe it is important to have people to look up to and admire. I think the work you are doing in bringing Go Seigen's life and work to light for the English speaking world is important.

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Where've you been? Zatoichi could slice the board in half, put it back together again and rearrange the position so fast that no-one even knew he'd drawn his sword - and he was blind. ~ John Fairbairn

Some thoughts.
What I enjoyed: I must say that the scenes were beautiful.

Except for the title, this movie is dedicated to master Wu Qinq yuan and his wife (Kazuko), I felt like the movie paid little homage to Go Seigen. Rather than making him seem like an warm admirable character, he seemed aloof. I honestly can't say I have a full-fledged admiration,but he seems like one of those people that I want to know better but I can't get to know. His inhibitions are all tied in.

If the director's intent was to make the movie grave then he certainly did:
Go Seigen's (Tian Zhuangzhuang) Sensei Segoe Kensaku committed suicide because "he couldn't play anymore"
His long time friend Kitani Minouri had an untimely death.
Go Seigen appears stoic perhaps. He cares more about religion, yet his wife Kazuko remains faithful to him.

Quotes to discusss:
"Competition and faith are my life-long vocations. Like fire and water, I depend on both. When I couldn't outrank the others, it was my time to leave". I don't agree with this statement. I believe Go Seigen is still an teaches go so I don't feel he has figuratively left the Go community..
"The are two things in my life: truth and Go."
I feel like in his attempt to gain truth and knowledge, he distances himself from family and friends. His stoicism is unbearable. After a while, it seems like he plays Go because people tell him to (like the man in the beginning and the lady in the cult).

Last thought: When the players played the stones, their placement was very gentle, in contrast with HnG which makes placing stones appear epic.

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Google Site
Bay Area High School Go

FYI-
Yellow Mountain now has a Region-Free version of "Mikan no Taikyoku" available. I just ordered a copy and will post a quick review of the DVD quality when I receive it.

I got mine from YMI quite recently:
http://www.ymimports.com/p-1587-the-go- ... e-dvd.aspx