Kobudo Bo: Karate Weapon of Self-Defense with Fumio Demura

Great video for just starting out. It covers good basics including what to call each move in the native language and how to hold the Bo staff properly for each move; worth the 60 min video

Really helps me to learn the Bo

Although Fumio Demura is a legend, this DVD does not do him justice. Buy his book. The book "BO - a karate weapon of self defense" is much better. The worst part of the DVD is that there is no section breaks (scene selection) where you can skip to the next scene. For better instruction get the DVD from Turtle Press (Jang Bong Fundamentals & Patterns DVD) or even the chinese staff dvds they teach you more.

This video introduces the basics of kobudo as taught by Fumio Demura. There seems to be an error in demonstrating gyaku zenkutsu dachi while calling it kokutsu dachi. I was disappointed that it didn't include shushi-no-kon-sho, but instead introduces a new basic kata. I've trained with sensei Demura, and as always, he stresses the importance of strong basics. This is good support for his book "Bo" for anyone first learning the bo, but it could have gone a bit further by including the same kata as the book.

Clearly presented for the individual just getting into martial arts or learning advanced techniques...

Very happy

Overall, I think there's stuff here that Bo practitioners can learn fromMy complaints:1. Lots of unnecessary drumming video clips in between segments2. Unnecessary starting lead up, and unnecessary advertising at the finish3. Very slow in delivery, sometimes you just have to stare at his face before he begins speaking. These could have been edited out.4. Should have more attacking and defending combination methods5. Should have shown speedy fight drills, or practice drillsGood points:1. Quite systematic in the approach2. Demonstrates slowly so you get it3. Teaches wellI bought it for US$9.99 as a video download at BlackBeltMagazine.com, and for that price, I think it's worth it's value especially if you are out looking for Bo video training.

I participated in a series of kobudo seminars in which Fumio Demura taught his Kobudo Kihon Kata. Readers will need a little context to understand what is going on here.Master Demura decided that kobudo was not being taught intelligently, with too much emphasis on learning just one weapon and only two or three kata for the black belt. He also thought the Okinawan kobudo kata were too long for the common purposes of testing and competition. He said he can judge your performance in the first five seconds, so why wait three minutes for a 200-step kata to finish?For these reasons he created six "Kihon Kata" for kobudo. They are beginner kata, exactly like the Heians (Pinans). The six kata cover the basic moves of bo, tonfa, nunchaku, sai, kama and ekubo. Each kata is about 20 moves long. Short and sweet. Perfect for beginners; perfect for contests and testing.Add these katas to your Shotokan curriculum, one per kyu rank parallel to the Heians. Your students will be greatly enriched.It is a pity that Demura marketed the Kihon Kata as six separate videos. Their special utility cannot be appreciated until you see the entire curriculum. The set of six kata is a milestone in kobudo teaching, but presented one-by-one the kata naturally disappoint kobudo experts. This is a set for beginners, and for people who teach beginners. In that light, these six kata are absolutely outstanding.

Excellent DVD.

The basic is very limited information and the price is way too high. I do not recommend to anyone.