C is for CAUGHT YOU AT LONG LAST, YOU STUPID SON OF A-

-so um, I caught Raikou in HeartGold today. First time I've gotten that guy without a Master Ball or being in Colosseum with its increased catch rates or whatever. Still working on Entei, but I may soon have all three in one game. Also caught Zapdos, a nice little bonus, and got a few leader numbers for rematches. I think I have seven or so, but you can only fight a few per day at specific times, so I roasted Bugsy's team over and over. That is one good point- multiple rematches with each one. As long as it's in the specific time, you can fight as much as you want.

Well, as promised, my overall review of HeartGold, summed up into two handy sections:
Pros:
*A pretty faithful remake with a lot of bonus stuff added in. Kanto's a bit better and caves/stuff are bigger, and leader rematches and increased levels help buff it up more.
*The Safari Zone in general is pretty cool. Step limits seem to have been removed, as far as I can tell.
*Great sprites for nearly everyone. There are a couple odd ones, but the majority are amazing.
*Pokewalker. So cool.
*The Pokeathlon is a fun diversion, and the point exchange helps you get some rare evolution items- King's Rock, Shiny Stone, Dawn Stone, Dusk Stone, and Metal Coat, off the top of my head.
*The return of Kurt's custom Poke Balls makes catching a lot easier.
*Humor in the game. "That's what's called a Fake Out," Youngster Joey's Rattata, the couple with a Cloyster and Onix, and two Bird Keepers within short walking distance named Bert and Ernie. Seriously.
*Beautiful music. Ho-oh's battle theme, the leader battle music, the Champion battle theme, the legendary beast music... lovely stuff.
*All that continuity. Every Champion appears! And so do Maylene and Crasher Wake! Jasmine will trade you the Steelix she uses in Sinnoh contests! Good job doing your homework, Game Freak.
Cons:
*Increased encounter rates. So, so much. It makes sense that they show up more when you're running, but it's so annoying when you want to get somewhere and don't want to have to walk slowly. And when you want to find something, the game seems to forget about it... also, that applies to surfing. Hate Tentacool? You're gonna see a lot of them. Buy Repels, seriously.
*The game isn't too hard. Clair and Lance will probably be your toughest battles, then it's fairly easy. Even the legendary pink cow of doom isn't too hard.
*I love the Pokeathlon, but it can get a little boring to do the same stuff over. Also, the Skill course is far and above my least favorite, having won at it only once. The bonuses seem to be random too. "Fighting spirit" seems to be a way to buff up the opponents' points and nothing else.
*Apparently Europe is now in control of the ratings board for America, because sadly the Game Corner is gone in every continent's games. And the guy outside Celadon's gym is no longer a pervert. Minor things, but still sad.
Overall Verdict?: Easily one of the best Pokemon games ever produced. Platinum has a couple things over it, but this game just has so much more (plus no Contests), so this edges it out. Worth the money.

So, other things? Not a whole lot... oh, I'm the light/sound board person for the Moliere show! I'm really excited to do it, but it will be a big responsibility, so I'm psyching myself up to do my best and learn something. I hope I can make everyone proud... plus it will be good experience.

I also saw the Poet Laureate for the USA speak for an hour today. The fact that I put Pokemon above this tells you how much poetry means to me. I drew all eleven Doctors today, partially during British Lit and partially during that session. I paid attention, I was just bored. My Jon Pertwee's gotten a lot better, though.