Oh wow! I used to love TheCaptain and his wacky, aggressive style. Players like Carmel were always a pleasure to watch too (since I wasn't 6D+ myself).

I do think the Java Applet (which used to give virus warnings) and the fact that other go servers (like Tygem) had stronger/more exciting games caused the decline. Maybe splitting the userbase into "Rooms" was too much? I also think the move to their "Shin KGS" web player came too slowly and OGS ate Kiseido's lunch.