MyDisplayedName wrote on 09/11/10 at 08:13:06:
Marin's two volumes again postponed. Now "October". It has been "April", then "June", "July", "August", "September", ...
So Marin has found some difficulties in certain lines, treatening the entire repertoar? This is my interpretation. He did promise 1.c4 and 2.g3 irrespective of what Black plays. Can he deliever?
I am a big fan of M.Marin's stuff. Love e.g., "Legends". Love his annotations, generally speaking. So, when it was announced that he will release an "improved" Kosten, I was very happy indeed. Actually, I switched from 1.d4 to 1.c4 some months before I discovered this. What a coincidence!
Now, I must confess: I don't see a reason to spend all this money on 3 volumes, when his lines clearly don't promise more than plain equality. Yeas, maybe a very strong statement, but ... really... If these positions at least were unclear, complicated as in the KID, it would be OK. But just look at the (very popular) Keres defence: I don't see any advantage at all for white in some of these lines. And other positions have been critisized in this forum.
Surely, I am not strong enough a player to be giving the final judgement of this work, but my feeling is that you are not worse off with Kosten + some independent thinking.
Am I alone here, having this "wasted money" feeling? I am actually considering switching back to 1.d4 (Avrukh). Can someone tell me why I should have faith in 1.c4 2.g3?
The aim of the English is not to gain the advantage out of the opening, but to reach positions which suit White and don't suit Black.
In this respect, Marin's repertoire has definitely succeeded, as evidenced by his excellent results in practice.
If you want a repertoire that gives White a += advantage or better in every variation, you should consult Carlsen or Kasparov.