Upon its debut, The Queen’s Gambit swiftly hit records to the ranks of Netflix's most prominent limited series. Naturally, speculation about a potential second season emerged almost immediately. Anya Taylor-Joy, the series' leading star, sparked conversation earlier this month with a tweet hinting at "The Queen’s Gambit season 2." However, the post was taken down after merely ten minutes, with Taylor-Joy subsequently confirming via Instagram that her account had been compromised. Nope, sorry. Don't believe that. She was just excited but the studio explained her legal NDAs. So we must wait.

 

Return of Queen's Gambit 2?

For that brief window, enthusiasts eagerly anticipated a return to the drama in the world of chess. Yet, it appears that The Queen’s Gambit will not hit screens for a second season. Or wait? Maybe? "My Twitter account has been compromised," Anya Taylor-Joy clarified on Instagram. "Regret any inconvenience caused. It's not from me!" Sure, have you heard the leaf will not fly without a cause?

 

 

Adapted from Walter Tevis's 1983 novel of identical title, The Queen’s Gambit chronicled the journey of Elizabeth Harmon, an orphaned chess prodigy navigating emotional turmoil, substance abuse, and alcoholism while ascending to the magic of the game. The series maxed world chess attention , clinching eleven Emmy Awards and made youtube channel Gothamchess a chess super hero because he was the first commenting the Queen's gambit - not the movie but the actual chess moves. And now Gothamchess has 4,8 million subscribers. (yes just from chess). 

Queen's gambit actual moves

 

 

Did you know that you can actually play Queen's gambit? Of course you heard about it. The film makers chose the name after the most popular chess opening out there. Or one of the most popular. But can you master it? Do you know some traps you can play against it?

Here are a few common traps associated with the Queen's Gambit chess opening:

Blackmar-Diemer Gambit Trap

After 1. d4 d5 2. c4 dxc4 3. e4, Black captures the pawn on c4 with 3...e5, aiming to counterattack. White plays 4. Nf3, and if Black carelessly captures the pawn on f3 with 4...exd4, White executes the trap with 5. Bxc4. Now, if Black plays 5...Bb4+, White replies with 6. Nc3! dxc3? 7. Bxf7+! Kxf7 8. Qxd8 cxb2+ 9. Ke2!, leaving Black in a precarious position.

Albin Countergambit Trap

In response to 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e5 (the Albin Countergambit), White can surprise Black with the move 3. dxe5. If Black carelessly captures the pawn on e5 with 3...d4, White exploits the weak d4-square with 4. e3!, seizing the initiative.

Marshall Defense Trap

After 1. d4 d5 2. c4 Nf6, White can spring the trap with 3. cxd5 e6?!. Black's intention is to quickly free the position with an active pawn push, but White exploits this with 4. dxe6 Bxe6 5. Nc3, winning a pawn and gaining a strong central position.

Tarrasch Trap

Following 1. d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 c5, White can tempt Black into capturing on c4 with 4. cxd5 exd5. After 5. dxc5 d4 6. Na4!, White pressures the d4 pawn and aims to exploit Black's awkwardly placed queen's knight.

These traps require precise play and awareness from both sides to avoid falling victim to them.

You can download all the traps and entire Queen's gambit book repertoire and chess database with 9,9 million chess games right here

 

Opening Master April 2024 updates

Yes we did it again. We just added 80 thousands more official chess games. Whether it is OM OTB or OM CORR both over-the-board chess players and correspondence chess players will enjoy the latest top chess databases out there. Starting just 39 EUR / year your computer and library will get the entire chess collection of the world since the beginning. 

Is there better chess database? Nope. Is there cheaper chess database? Nope

Let's recap

OM CORR 2024 04 = 2,176,302 chess games

OM OTB 2024 04 = 9,923,727 chess games

OM GOLEM 2024 04 (includes OM CORR and OM OTB plus OM PORTAL and many more) = 31,122,118 chess games. 

What are the newest chess tournaments additions?

The American Cup March 12-21 in Saint Louis in USA

The Reykjavik Open March 15-21 in Iceland. 

The 5th Shenzhen Longgang Chess Masters February 29 -  March 7 in China. 

The 6th Prague International Chess Festival Feb 26 - Mar 7 in Czech Republic

The Weissenhaus Freestyle Chess GOAT Challenge February 9 - Feb 16 in Germany and many more

Last but not least. We are working on the online version of the Opening Master. Wish us luck. 

Best regards

Alexander Horvath and OM team

PS Oh by the way, do you know April 1st as All fools day? Does it apply to Queen's Gambit Season 2? Maybe.

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