By Carolyn Webb, Aisha Dow and Ben Preiss
While it's been a big year globally with a new US president, an Olympic Games, the Syrian conflict and the Brexit vote, Melbourne had its fair share of drama too.
It's hard to choose, but for better or worse, here are our 10 events that defined our city in 2016
February
Billy Brownless (left) and Garry Lyon in happier times.
Among The Footy Show panellists, it's Sam Newman who usually grabs the headlines, but in 2016 it was the TV show's urbane co-host Garry Lyon who was in the spotlight for the wrong reasons.
Lyon quit his media commitments, citing mental health issues, after it emerged he'd had an affair with Nicky, the ex-wife of his fellow Footy Show panellist and close friend Billy Brownless.
Brownless told The Footy Show he was angry, disappointed and hurt, and raised eyebrows by referring to Nicky thus: "You don't touch a man's wallet, you don't touch his wife."
Time heals, and in recent weeks Lyon has indicated that in 2017 he will return to radio on SEN and TV show Footy Classified. Brownless has said he would be open to reuniting with Lyon on The Footy Show.
March
Families celebrating Moomba on March 12 fled or cowered in restaurants as up to 100 youths rampaged through Federation Square and along Swanston Street, punching and kicking one another and flinging chairs.
It was thought to be a clash between members of the Apex gang, predominantly of South Sudanese descent, and an Islander gang.
It's been a year of angst over youth crime and what to do about it. In November, a group of teenagers staged a riot in the Youth Justice Centre at Parkville, causing $2 million damage, and destroying half the accommodation.
Legal action continues over where to house inmates while repairs are made.
Shockwaves reverberated through Melbourne's underworld on March 15 when lawyer Joseph "Pino" Acquaro, who had clients linked to the Calabrian mafia, was shot near his gelati business, the Gelobar in Lygon Street, Brunswick.
In November, The Age revealed that the main suspect was a man who had a minor business dispute with Mr Acquaro.
In addition, Acquaro's estranged sons Alfred, Alessio and Adriano Acquaro, are suing Pino's brother and executor Massimo Acquaro in the Supreme Court for a greater share of Pino's $1.6 million estate.
June
The resignation of Emergency Services Minister Jane Garrett came amid a rancorous dispute over a pay deal for professional CFA firefighters.
The brawl claimed several high-profile scalps, including former CFA boss Lucinda Nolan and the authority's former board.
Premier Daniel Andrews has now lost three cabinet ministers, including Ms Garrett, in less than two years in government.
Steve Herbert stood down from the ministry after it was revealed he used his taxpayer-funded car to ferry around his two dogs. And Adem Somyurek was also forced to stand aside amid allegations he bullied a member of his staff.
September
Financial strife and a fear someone was after them is believed to have led Mark and Jacoba Tromp, redcurrant farmers from Silvan in Melbourne's east, to go missing with their three adult children, sparking a bizarre, five day, 1500km police hunt and media frenzy with headlines like Road Trip From Hell.
The five turned up, one by one, in Bathurst, Yass, and the Jenolan Caves in NSW, and in Wangaratta, Victoria, and there were allegations of ute stealing and tailgating.
Mark Tromp, 51, apologised for the "hurt and concern" caused, said mental health advice was being sought and said he wanted to "make sense of our ordeal and return to normal life".
October
Sentimental favourites rarely win in sport. But few begrudged the Western Bulldogs, whose last flag was in 1954,winning the AFL premiership with a thrilling battle against the Sydney Swans at the MCG on October 1.
It seemed the fairytale couldn't get any more perfect for fans who'd stuck by the Doggies through those excruciating losing years.
Until, on the premiership dais, coach Luke Beveridge draped his premiership medal around the neck of injured captain Bob Murphy, who hadn't played in the winning game.
All together now: "Awwww."
Carlton's Corkman Irish Pub after its illegal demolition in October. Credit: Eddie Jim
Raman Shaqiri and Stefce Kutlesovski may have been the most unpopular men in Melbourne when in October they illegally demolished Carlton's Corkman Irish Pub in Carlton.
They went on to earn the tag "cowboy developers" when asbestos from the historic drinking hole was found dumped.
Following community outrage, the pair have since promised to "rebuild" the Corkman at their own expense; it's yet unknown if any of the original materials can be saved.
November
It was dubbed an "unprecedented" medical disaster. On November 21, thousands of Victorians fell suddenly and acutely ill after a mass outbreak of asthma, likely triggered by thunderstorm activity.
Around 8500 people were so sick they required hospitalisation and the demand was so great Ambulance Victoria ran out of vehicles. Eight Victorians died, the youngest a high-school student just a few days away from attending his year 12 graduation. The "asthma cluster" is now subject to multiple reviews and investigations.
Catastrophe hit an ordinary suburban retail strip on November 18 when a 21-year-old Burmese asylum seeker allegedly walked into a Springvale Commonwealth Bank with a large container of flammable liquid.
He set himself alight, injuring himself and 26 people and gutting the outlet. Housemates said the man had been stressed and angry over not being able to access Centrelink payments, felt pressure to send money overseas to family and was on a bridging visa and unable to work. No one has been charged over the incident and investigations are continuing.
December
Melburnians' pre-Christmas ennui was jolted when seven people were arrested over an alleged terror attack planned for Christmas Day targeting Federation Square, St Paul's Cathedral and Flinders Street Station.
On December 23, about 400 officers from Victoria Police, Australian Federal Police and ASIO raided properties in Flemington, Meadow Heights, Dallas, Campbellfield and Gladstone Park, arresting seven young people.
Four men were charged and remanded in custody to appear in court in April.