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RVA Magazine’s Best Stories of 2019

RVA Staff | January 1, 2020

Topics: 2019 in review, happy new year, holidays, RVA Magazine

This is not only the end of a year but a decade, and here at RVA Mag, we feel it would be eminently appropriate to kick off 2020 by looking back at all your favorite reads of the past year. From the important political stories of the year to the big cultural events around town and the biggest music and art news of 2019, it’s all here, adding up to the story of what it was like to live in Virginia in 2019.

So before we turn the page on a new decade, take a look back at the most popular stories on our site over the past year, and catch up on any you may have missed the first time around. Here’s to you, Richmond — let’s start this new decade off on a high note!

  1. Give Me Something To Break: Rage RVA Helps You Safely Unleash Your Anger
  2. It’s Official: The Great Richmond Bus Reroute Reduced Transportation Access For Low-Income Residents
  3. The Mysterious Disappearance Of Baugh Auto Body
  4. Virginia’s New Fake Liquor: How Nasty Is It?
  5. A Ghost Bike Memorial’s Removal, And What It Means For The Community
  6. Skill-based Slot Machines Put Vegas at the Corner Bar
  7. Richmond Restaurant Romance: Ideal First-Date Spots For Any Budget
  8. Balls Of Rice: Onigiri RVA Brings Japanese Grab-N-Go Cuisine To Carytown
  9. Opinion: The Real Reasons Why Richmond Is A Great Underground Music City
  10. Racism Doesn’t Stop at the Boards: Lessons from EVMS’ Yearbook
  11. Rock Is Dead, Let It Die
  12. Indie Film Last Call Finds the ‘Twilight Zone’ In the Richmond Bar Scene
  13. Illiterate Light’s Unique Journey To Musical Bliss
  14. Goodbye Strange Matter: The End Of An Era
  15. The Woman Putting The Hope Back In Hopewell
  16. Back-Of-The-House Babes: Richmond Women Dominate Their Work In a Male-Dominated Restaurant Industry
  17. Read This Before You See Roger Stone and Kristin Davis At Paper Moon This Weekend
  18. Your Personal Guide to Richmond’s Thrift Shop Scene
  19. The Locker Room Isn’t Just A Bar, It’s Family
  20. Fighting For Food Justice In A Gentrified Richmond
  21. The Faces Of Richmond Hip Hop
  22. Sheetz vs. Wawa: An Epic Battle Of Convenience Store Titans
  23. Fighting Joe Is Back On The Ballot
  24. Artist’s Map of Richmond’s Streetcar System Reminds Us What Might Have Been
  25. GWAR Announces Unveiling of Dave Brockie Memorial Monument in Hollywood Cemetery

GayRVA’s Best Stories of 2019

GayRVA Staff | January 1, 2020

Topics: 2019 in review, gayrva, happy new year, holidays

Another year has gone into the books, full of ups and downs for the LGBTQ community here in Virginia and all around the world. As we celebrate the beginning of a new decade and look forward to a brighter year ahead, we wanted to take one last look back at the year that was, with a recap of GayRVA’s most popular stories from 2019.

From drag queens and dance parties to the growth of Pride around the Commonwealth, we covered it all… plus a whole lot of chicken sandwiches (yes, folks, where you grab lunch is an LGBTQ issue), an immortal Richmond gay icon, and the Westboro Baptist Church being run out of town. Relive all the big moments and catch up on the stories you missed the first time with this final look back at the year that was 2019 in LGBTQ Virginia.

Happy 2020, everyone!

  1. Cobra Cabana Takes A Stand With Their Gay-Fil-A Special
  2. Sold Out Nationwide: Popeyes Non-Homophobic Chicken Sandwich Is A Monster Hit
  3. No Genre, No Gender: LGBTQ Music Thrives in Richmond
  4. LGBTQ Rights Book Inspires Outrage For Elementary School Parent In Hanover
  5. The Triumphant Return of Richmond’s Beloved Queer Dance Party
  6. Westboro Baptist Church Hurls Slurs Ahead of Richmond Visit
  7. Long Live The Dirt: A Monument In Memory of Dirtwoman Comes To Oregon Hill
  8. The Technicolor Troll Drag of Richmond’s Own Sweet Pickles
  9. Driver Defaces Rainbow Intersection In Scott’s Addition With Skid Marks
  10. Zachary Brown Brings Youthful Determination to Campaign for State Senate
  11. Chicki Parm: The Comedy Queen of Richmond
  12. Equality Virginia’s Annual Commonwealth Dinner Recognizes 2019’s OUTstanding Virginians
  13. Westboro Baptist Church’s Protest at VCU Was Vastly Outnumbered By LGBTQ Counter-Protesters
  14. Hollins University Changes Policy On Transgender Students
  15. It Isn’t Just For Big Cities Anymore: Across Virginia, Smaller Communities Bring Pride to Main Street
  16. Won’t You Be My Gaybor?
  17. JK Rowling Is On Board The TERF Train
  18. 13 Fascinating Movies That Celebrate The Richness of the Transgender Experience
  19. Op-Ed: Gay Men Have a Stake In the Abortion Debate — The Women Who Have Always Supported Us
  20. Michael Berlucchi Appointed To Serve Interim Term on Virginia Beach City Council
  21. Re-Educating Richmond: An LGBTQ History Lesson at the VHMC
  22. VCU Launches Minor In LGBT+ and Queer Studies
  23. UMC’s Anti-Gay Vote Creates Dilemma For LGBTQ Church Members
  24. Mario Lopez Says It’s Dangerous to Support Transgender Kids
  25. Get A Taste Of Betty Who At This Year’s VA PrideFest

RVA Comics X-Change: Issue 34

Ash Griffith | December 31, 2019

Topics: 2019 in review, Alpha Comics and Games, Bad Weekend, Canto, comics, Comics X-Change, Criminal, Fearless, Josh Wright, RVA Comics X-Change, Snotgirl, Something is Killing the Children

Happiest of holidays, comic fans! Welcome to this week’s issue of your RVA Comics X-Change, and the final issue of 2019, featuring our End of the Year review, where we take a quick snapshot of the year in comics that was 2019.

For today’s issue, we decided to reach out to some of our friends in comics who were kind enough to help us out with recommendations throughout this year. These are some of their favorite reads from the year that was 2019, and what we were digging as we trudged along.

Our friends at Alpha Comics and Games in Willow Lawn have been there with us since the start, and have recommended quite a few of our own personal favorites. Not only do they themselves have great taste, but they always know just what to recommend you, even when you can’t tell what you’re in the mood for. 

Something is Killing the Children, by James Tynion IV and Werther Dell’edera

“It reminds me a little of some storylines in Hellboy, so it’s definitely a good read while you wait for The Return of Effie Kolb,” said Co-Owner Alex Smith. “It’s really really hard to sum up the ‘book of the year’ when there are always so many awesome things out, but Something Is Killing The Children was one of the few releases this year that actively caters to things I like.”

Canto, by David M. Booher and Drew Zucker

Smith also passed along a recommendation from her partner in Alpha Comics, Co-Owner Brianna Beebe. “Brianna’s comic of the year would be the delightful fantasy comic Canto,” Smith said. “While it has lots of references to existing fantasy works like The Wizard of Oz, it takes them and builds them into a fascinating and rich world completely of it’s own. The story is emotionally resonant, if a little sad at times — but the whole experience of the comic is wonderful.”

Josh Wright has been another recurring face with us this year, helping us find the balance between indie comics and tried and true mainstream. When Josh hasn’t been researching the next comic to talk about with us, he can be seen doing improv comedy with his two-person team, Sweet Sweet Angel Babies, or slinging some solid jams with his band, Lovely Dove (also a duo, because Wright is nothing if not consistent). 

Sentient, by Jeff Lemire and Gabriel Walta

“The humanity Lemire brings to his sci fi books is always a joy!” said Wright. “The oversized format from TKO really showcases Walta’s artwork. Can a spaceship’s A.I. take care of children who suddenly find themselves all alone? If you love The Vision or Descender, check out Sentient.”

Our own Editor-In-Chief, Marilyn Drew Necci, also helped us out this year by taking the time to give us the low down on her favorites as well. When she isn’t reminding me I need to read Paper Girls, she is also telling you the best shows you need to keep on your radar every week in her weekly show column.

Bad Weekend, by Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips

“It’s a dark crime story that takes place at and around a comic book convention, featuring main characters who are washed-up, struggling industry vets trying to survive any way they can,” said Necci. “It’s not only a great crime story but a great look at the darker side of the comics world, where work-for-hire policies continue to rip off many of our best creators. ”

I decided to break my own rules and offer two favorites for the year instead of just one (it’s so hard to narrow it down!). However, I went against the very foundation of my comics fandom in my recommendations – neither are pop culture-based or remotely related to Betty or her frenemy for life, Veronica.

Fearless, by Seanan McGuire, Kelly Thompson, and Leah Williams

I will go anywhere and do anything for the women of Marvel’s Avengers. When I found out that there was an anthology series coming out this year that not only featured them, but less-covered characters like Jessica Jones? I couldn’t have been more excited – except then I discovered that it is also incredible. This four-part series is out now, with a trade paperback collection more than likely to be released sometime in 2020. 

Snotgirl, by Bryan Lee O’Malley & Leslie Hung

This series is so divisive, and I get it, but it still bums me out. A lot of people criticize O’Malley’s approach to twenty-something women as being similarly empty as that of YA Author John Green’s approach to teenage girls, which is a shame. I of course disagree, and I think that this is honestly some of O’Malley’s best writing to date. Some of the later issues of this series are stronger and more thought-out than his iconic Scott Pilgrim series, which only goes to show that when he takes more time to go above and beyond vapid slacker humor, he really hits the mark. 

Thank you again for getting us through yet another year, comic fans. With so much going on both in print and on the film side of things, such as the release of a little-known film called Avengers: Endgame, it’s been a pretty big year. What have your favorites been? What are you looking forward to in 2020?

As always, until next time, comic fans.

Top Image via Superman’s Christmas Adventure, Vol. 2, #1 (1944)

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