There’s news that makes you go “Hmmm…” And then there’s news that makes you go “Whaaa?” These are the second kind.

We asked Boston.com readers which weird, wacky, and offbeat Boston-area stories garnered their attention most during 2024, and they didn’t hold back. We received about 400 responses mentioning any number of local developments that you’d be tempted to think somebody made up, if you didn’t know they were true.

Below we count down the top five, along with some others readers found worthy of note. And meanwhile, who knows: 2025 might be even weirder.

5. The great North End dining reservation battle (9%)

Restaurateurs everywhere must wish they had the faccia tosta of Jen Royle, the Boston restaurant owner who doesn’t take guff from anybody — especially customers who try to get out of their reservations. When a tourist (from New York!) did an end-run around Royle’s reservation policy at her North End TABLE restaurant in February, using his credit card insurance to avoid paying a $250 cancellation fee, she allegedly tracked him down on social media and let him have it. “I just wanted to personally thank you for screwing over my restaurant and my staff when you disputed your cancellation fee,” she wrote in a message that the man screen-shotted and shared on social media, where it was viewed by tens of millions. “Pathetic,” Royle added, for good measure.

Tracking down would-be customers to give them a flogging may not be the best business decision, but anybody who’s ever dealt with a tough customer in their line of work has got to appreciate Royle’s gumption. “Heroine archetype that you ultimately cannot help but root for,” wrote Mink S. from Dorchester, citing both Royle and a certain other 2024 standout you’ll see mentioned in No. 1, below. “Flawed but fascinating!” We concur, Mink.

4. Dave Portnoy, in general (10%)

Is it just us, or is Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy suddenly, well, everywhere? The man gets within whiffing distance of a pizza place and the entire world stops turning as people await his latest “One Bite” review. (Even if he doesn’t always get them right, once the New York Times has dubbed you a “pizza influencer” you can basically say whatever you want.) 

As if that weren’t enough, back in July he had to go and get himself stranded at sea off the coast of Nantucket when his boat’s engine and breakers died, necessitating a Coast Guard rescue. He chronicled the whole ordeal (where else?) on TikTok, declaring that “Captain Dave lives to tell another tale.” Not everybody is a fan — “Only follow the Portnoy stories to see what moronic thing he’s said lately,” wrote Mark M. from Danvers — but there’s no denying that the lucky owner of a new $42 million Nantucket mansion is riding pretty high.

3. The Boston topless protest (11%)

“It’s not about the top; it’s about oppression,” Katrina Brees, the co-organizer of a topless protest in Boston last August, told Boston.com. And now that we’ve cleared that up you can all get your minds out of the gutter, the 11% of you who mentioned this as your favorite off-beat story of the year. We know you’re mostly men, because a subsequent survey we did showed that men overwhelmingly wanted women to be able to take their shirts off in public. Women, on the other hand, tended to be more in favor of men keeping their own shirts ON, because they’ve been to a beach and have seen things. Enough said.

And in case you were wondering, about six women wound up going topless at the protest, and about 100 people showed up to ogle them. We’re not sure if that’s progress, but we do know that it proved a challenge for news photographers.

2. The Tom Brady Roast (20%)

Tom Brady may have long since moved on from the Patriots to greener pastures — i.e. a Super Bowl win with Tampa Bay and a zillion-dollar contract with Fox Sports — but that didn’t stop Bostonites from lapping up every minute of Netlfix’s roast of the quarterback last May. (And there were a lot of minutes — the thing actually hit the three-hour mark.) 

“I’m still aghast at the Brady roast,” wrote Bob from Stoughton, but just because people were aghast (or perhaps even agog), that didn’t mean they could turn away. This outlet alone did close to a dozen stories on it, and you just kept reading them! Never let it be said we don’t give the people what they want. 

For Brady’s part, it became increasingly obvious over the course of the evening that he may not have really understood what a roast was — that’s one of those things you might miss if you spend every waking moment of your life for two decades studying play calls and eating kale. And he said afterwards he wouldn’t do it again, mainly so his kids wouldn’t have to hear people quoting Nikki Glaser lines back to them. That’s not good for anybody.

1. Author’s racy Market Basket parody prompts cease-and-desist (22%)

The world has a new folk hero, and no, we don’t mean Luigi Mangione. We’re talking about Madison Murray: When her spoof of the Market Basket logo to promote her erotic art and poetry book prompted a cease-and-desist from the beloved local supermarket, she wound up ceasing-and-desisting her way right into our hearts.

“Madison Murray is an amazing artist doing hilarious, wonderful niche work of representing us working class kids on the North Shore,” wrote Desiree D. of Medford, echoing dozens of other readers singing Murray’s praises. “Her feud with Market Basket will be one of my top Boston moments of all time.” Did you hear that? Of all time! 

For her part, Murray says she never meant to offend the grocery chain with her “Wh*** For Your Dollar” merchandise or the pictures of her wearing a bikini made out of Market Basket plastic bags (the old, un-environmentally friendly kind). “Like, I love Market Basket,” she told Boston.com. “I would never, ever try to tarnish their brand. If anything, I created it to try to pay homage and show my love for Market Basket even more.” Meanwhile, Boston.com readers have shown their love for you, Madison! That and 99 cents will get you a bottle of Chelmsford soda. 

Honorable mentions:

The New Hampshire Diaper Spa: Let’s face it, calling your business “The Diaper Spa” — a nursery-like business for adults who role play as children and [checks notes] wear diapers — is probably going to get you into trouble with the neighbors, which is exactly what happened in Atkinson, New Hampshire, this year. Not that we can think of anything better … “Babies R Us,” maybe? (On second thought, never mind.) “The diaper thing was funny, but not my top choice — seems like more of a bottom,” wrote Alison from New Hampshire.

The Bourne Rotary stealth camper: There are probably worse ways to get YouTube famous than by sleeping out in the iconic rotary at the entrance to Cape Cod, cooking up a lobster roll, and waking up covered in pine sap. But there are probably better ways too.

Celebrities take over Boston: We’ve had our share in Boston and the surrounding area this year, including the likes of Jason Momoa, Channing Tatum, Larry David, and Renee Rapp and Ed Sheeran, not to mention local fixtures like Matt Damon and John Krasinski. And most recently, Robert Pattinson and Zendaya sightings have become so common that the TV news doesn’t even notice them anymore. Bonus: Where goeth Zendaya also goeth Tom Holland, and/or his lookalikes. 

Joro spider hits Beacon Hill: The arrival of the Joro spider — you know, that invasive, bright yellow-and-blue arachnid that can grow to about the size of your palm — in Boston in September caused, well, just about the amount of panic you’d expect. “Grab the flamethrowers!” exclaimed Christine M. of Westboro in response to our poll on the matter, which found that 41% of readers classified the spider’s arrival as among their “worst nightmares.”

Ayo Edebiri reveals her favorite dessert: The Boston-born star of “The Bear” told Seth Meyers about The Cool Dog — the frozen treat remembered only by dyed-in-the-wool New Englanders — and the rest was history. “Cool Dogs forever!” wrote Em P. from Cambridge.

Stay tuned for a full list of the most-read stories on Boston.com in 2024 next week.

Peter Chianca

General Assignment Editor

Peter Chianca, Boston.com’s general assignment editor since 2019, is a longtime news editor, columnist, and music writer in the Greater Boston area.

Associated Press

Pittsburgh Penguins (16-15-5, in the Metropolitan Division) vs. New York Islanders (13-15-7, in the Metropolitan Division)

Elmont, New York; Saturday, 7:30 p.m. EST

BOTTOM LINE: The Pittsburgh Penguins visit the New York Islanders after Michael Bunting’s two-goal game against the Philadelphia Flyers in the Penguins’ 7-3 win.

New York has gone 13-15-7 overall with a 3-3-2 record in Metropolitan Division play. The Islanders have a 13-3-4 record in games they score at least three goals.

Pittsburgh has a 2-6-1 record in Metropolitan Division play and a 16-15-5 record overall. The Penguins have a -20 scoring differential, with 111 total goals scored and 131 conceded.

The teams meet Saturday for the second time this season. The Islanders won the previous matchup 4-3 in a shootout.

TOP PERFORMERS: Anders Lee has 13 goals and 14 assists for the Islanders. Maxim Tsyplakov has four goals and two assists over the last 10 games.

Evgeni Malkin has seven goals and 22 assists for the Penguins. Sidney Crosby has two goals and 12 assists over the last 10 games.

LAST 10 GAMES: Islanders: 4-5-1, averaging 2.7 goals, 4.5 assists, 2.5 penalties and five penalty minutes while giving up 3.4 goals per game.

Penguins: 6-3-1, averaging four goals, 6.5 assists, 2.9 penalties and 6.6 penalty minutes while giving up 3.1 goals per game.

INJURIES: Islanders: None listed.

Penguins: None listed.

___

The Associated Press created this story using technology provided by Data Skrive and data from Sportradar.

A person was found dead inside of a barn after it caught fire in Branford Thursday night.

The fire department said they responded to a barn fire on North Ivy Street just before 6:30 p.m.

Firefighters found a barn-style shed fully engulfed in flames, spreading to a nearby building.

A person was reported missing and was ultimately found dead inside of the barn, according to fire officials. Their identity is unknown at this time.

The Branford Fire Marshal, Branford police and the Connecticut State Police Fire Investigation Unit are investigating.

Crews said they were able to contain the fire quickly. No additional information was immediately available.