New York’s apocalyptic big screen fantasies come true this weekend. After cruelly decimating NYC in three previous films (Independence Day, Godzilla, The Day After Tomorrow), director Roland Emmerich finally focuses the destruction on the rest of the world in 2012, his tale of the Mayan-predicted doomsday. The greatest city on Earth doesn’t escape, but at least it gets to watch California catch an L.

To better understand why the residents of the Big Apple are relieved to see other cities toppled, watch all the classic clips of New York being destroyed from throughout movie history. If we missed any of your favorites, post a link in the comments section so everyone can watch as it all falls down…

Ghostbusters (1984)
Destroyed By: The Stay Puft Marshmallow Man
Complex Says: Stomped out by a motherfuckin’ marshmallow man?! He’s soft and sweet, so what the hell does that say about NYC?

Watchmen (2009)
Destroyed By: A nuclear blast
Complex Says: The movie adaptation was a fail, but we have to admit this explosion was fresh. At least it wasn’t a giant naked blue man wrecking shop.

Cloverfield (2008)
Destroyed By: A gigantic alien monster
Complex Says: We’re not sure which is more nauseating—a monster tearing the city apart or the horrendously shitty idea to show it from the shaky perspective of a dickhead with a flip-cam for 84 minutes.

The Day After Tomorrow (2004)
Destroyed By: A storm and tidal wave caused by the effects of global warming
Complex Says: Fuck you, Accuweather.

“New York New York,” Tha Dogg Pound f/ Snoop Dogg (1995)
Destroyed By: Giant Snoop Dogg kicking buildings over
Complex Says: We thought a smackdown from Stay Puft made New York look soft until the city got stomped out by a dude with a perm.

I Am Legend (2007)
Destroyed By: Plague and low-flying fighter jets
Complex Says: We’re actually OK losing the Brooklyn Bridge. The Manhattan has way less tourist fuckery anyway.

War of the Worlds (2005)
Destroyed By: Alien attack
Complex Says: For once, somebody loves our beloved Brooklyn enough to smack it around. Thank you! Hey, we never said we had healthy relationships.

Armageddon (1998)
Destroyed By: A meteor shower
Complex Says: We have a giant explosion we’d like to give sneak racist Michael Bay. Blockbuster pause.

Deep Impact (1998)
Destroyed By: A megatsunami caused by the collision of a comet and Earth
Complex Says: We’re not sure why, but suddenly we really want to line up some dominoes.

Godzilla (1998)
Destroyed By: A giant, irradiated lizard monster and the U.S. army
Complex Says: The Chrysler name hasn’t been damaged this badly since Fiat saved the car company.

Independence Day (1996)
Destroyed By: Alien laser
Complex Says: Alien, priest, or hobo on the A train—it feels degrading no matter which one blasts off on you.

When Worlds Collide (1951)
Destroyed By: Flood caused by the collision of Earth and the planet Bellus
Complex Says: A miniature NYC flooded with a garden hose never looked so terrifying!

King Kong (1933)
Destroyed By: A giant stop-motion animated gorilla
Complex Says: Stop-motion? Nah, our grandparents’ bowels were definitely moved by this one.

X-Men (2000)
Destroyed By: Cyclops’ eye-rays
Complex Says: Hero or not, you don’t mess with Lady Liberty’s crown! That was a New Era one of one, you asshole!

Fail-Safe (1964)
Destroyed By: Nuclear bombs
Complex Says: Though it doesn’t actually show the city being obliterated, we’re still disturbed that the president would trade NYC for Moscow when he could have saved it by talking up Philadelphia’s historic value and appeasing the Soviets by wiping cheesesteaks and Freeway beards off the map. Somehow life would have gone on.

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You’re probably still debating over whether New York or Philadelphia has hotter girls (vote here), but there is a baseball series going on between both cities, you know? We kid. Of course you know. That’s not to say that you’ve been watching all the games though, no matter how sports savvy you try to act around your friends. In case you missed out, Jay-Z and Alicia Keys opened up Game 2 of the World Series last night with their NYC anthem, “Empire State Of Mind.” The boys in blue might wanna get Hov on the bill for all their games, because they walked away with the win. Watch the performance above.

Tune in to Complex.com every morning at 8 AM for your daily “Wake N’ Watch” video.

If you can make it in New York, you can make it anywhere. If you can’t, you’re just a c-suckin’ sonovabitch. Star pitcher CC Sabathia, who just signed with the Yankees for seven years and $161 million, will soon find out if he can deal with the stress of hurling in the Big Apple. A fat, fun-loving California dude, he wanted to sign with a National League team in the Golden State, where life and baseball are sunny, but he took the Evil Empire’s money and now he’ll have to contend with cold weather, frigid fans, high expectations, over-involved owners and media that gets up in that ass more than a prison sugar daddy.

We’ll have to wait and see if Bronx Bummers boo the smile off his face, but in the meantime, check out six players who signed with the Yanks for big money as free agents and found out they were definitely not built for New York…

DANNY TARTABULL
The outfielder, who signed a five-year, $25-million contract after the 1991 season, was a decent hitter for the Yankees but interfering owner George Steinbrenner and fans attacked him publicly for not producing more. When he was traded, Tartabull said, “I feel like I’ve been released from jail.” He also said the team was going to be a “disaster” in 1996. He was right, if disaster means World Series champions.
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ED WHITSON
The pitcher played for the Yankees from 1985-86 and was booed for not living up to his high salary. Oh, and also ’cause he broke manager Billy Martin’s arm in a fight. Whitson hated the Yankees and their fans so much that, after leaving, he refused to sign baseball cards or pictures of him in which he wore pinstripes. Well, on the occasions he didn’t sign “Blow me.”
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HIDEKI IRABU
In 1997, the Yankees signed the chunky Japanese pitcher (nicknamed Hideki “I rob you” by sharp fans) to a four-year, $12.8 million contract. He won back-to-back World Series rings with the team in 1998 and 1999 but was a non-factor in the postseason. When his inconsistent production wasn’t the issue, his weight was. After the big fella lazily failed to cover first base on a ground ball in spring training, Steinbrenner called him a “fat pussy toad.” The owner, realizing he’d gone too far, later apologized publicly to any fat pussy toads he may have offended by comparing them to Irabu.
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CARL PAVANO
After signing a four-year, $39.5 million contract with the Yankees after the 2004 season, Pavano bombed in the Bronx because he proved injury-prone and everyone from fans to teammates questioned his work ethic and desire to get back out on the field. While many suspect he may have been faking injuries by the end because he hated everyone, we think he was suffering from a very real broken heart. Aww.
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JASON GIAMBI
The superhuman first baseman signed with the Yanks for seven years and $120 million in 2001 and slugged like only a steroid user can. Then in 2004 it came out that he’d been taking human growth hormone. The Giambino issued a vague apology for having done something wrong, then got off the juice and shrunk back to mere human size. Weighing testicular cancer and the World Series he never won them, warm and caring Yankees fans say, “Hey, alls we’re sayin’ is New Yawk has a lotta friggin’ great nut doctors…”

Posted up on surrounding buildings (either that or bopping around town with his jet pack), jwilly examines the supposedly hidden living space of the upper crust. Our only regret is that there are no pics of gazillionaire housewives sunbathing topless. See a gallery of his best flicks below, including the penthouse of the Soho Grand.

[Flickr via Neatorama]

Yesterday, a series of seven display cases appeared near the Complex offices, attached by cables to trees on 23rd Street just west of 6th Avenue. Inside the cases are various pieces of NYC detritus: bottle caps, parking receipts, guitar picks, matchbooks, pigeon feathers, green Tic Tacs, pens, and the filters from Black N Milds, among other objects. At the bottom of each frame is the simple caption: “THE ITEMS DISPLAYED IN THIS BOX WERE COLLECTED FROM THE TREE WELL BELOW ON JULY 11TH AND 25TH, 2008.” And of course, this being New York, two of the cases had been ripped off by this afternoon. See close-up images of the five remaining cases below.

[Click on an image to view full size]

The rampant drugs and violence that deemed New York shitty in the '80s, reigns today in the tongue-in-cheek titled, It's All Good. Shot in some of the city's most notorious 'hoods, Serbian-born photographer Boogie admits in his new book, “This is the only reality I see.” And it bites.

Photo by Boogie
It’s All Good is now available through Powerhouse Books