Legendary: Of, pertaining to, or of the nature of a legend.
So here I am with another installment of "Seak Says!" Today I want to talk about the career of Adam "Edge" Copeland. I haven't read the Smackdown spoilers and I'm writing this before Friday so I'm not moved to write specifically by his farewell. This is all my memories of a man who will truly be missed.
It is an extreme rarity that a fan can sit back and watch a legendary career unfold from start to finish. I want to focus on the word legendary real quick, because I feel it is a word thrown around far too easily these days. A legend must be able to stand the test of time, never overshadowed by it's peers. To be a legend, you must hold yourself to legendary standards from your beginning to your end. This second part eliminates some of the greats in this business from being legends, in my honest opinion. The likes of Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair stand out in this regard. They would be considered legends, had they not tarnished their careers in their later stages. But a look back at the full career of "Edge" easily puts him into the "legend" category.
Like I said earlier, in this business, a fan rarely sees a legend from start to finish. I was lucky enough to witness Edge from his early years to his final goodbye, and for that I'm grateful. Everyone knows Edge debuted in WWF in 1998, yet few remember his brief run in WCW......against Meng......and I'm pretty sure that was it. I was a WCW fan at the time and I vaguely remember the match. Watching it now on YouTube jogs my memory a bit, but that was a long time ago. All of my real memories of Edge begin in the WWF. I can still remember his promos hyping him up when he was new, walking around darkened streets, beating up random people, and then coming to the ring through the crowd when he finally started to wrestle. He was different right from the start, and he fit his persona perfectly. From the way he dressed, to the way he spoke, to his overall look all together, he screamed loner and he had everyone believing it.
Next up for his career was a faction known as The Brood. They were a strange group that really is a look back at where WWF was at the time. They personified "different" when WWF wanted to be different. Better yet, he was paired with his "brother" Christian, and any time these two are together we witnessed magic. Their chemistry in the ring is something that any tag team could look at today and learn a few things from. Their part in this faction also lead to a feud with the Hardy Boyz (they spelled it with a "z" back than because it was cool!) which went on to give us some of the greatest tag team matches in the history of not just the WWE, but of wrestling as a whole. I challenge anybody who has yet to see these classic matches, from ladders to tables and eventually to TLC, to watch them right now and NOT be amazed by what these teams did. It's impossible! During this time Edge and Christian stood head and shoulders above the other tag teams. Other great teams such as The Dudleyz (there's that z again!) and the Hardyz where there with them, but in the end proved to be one trick ponies. Take away the hardcore atmosphere and the Dudleys had nothing, take away the high spots and the Hardys had nothing, yet E&C still managed to shine. This is where I believe Edge really came into his character. If you watch the comedy skits with Edge, and later on a few with Mick Foley, and you can see the range this man was capable of. To go from an absolute loner, to a vampire (lmfao), to a cocky comedy heel is no easy task. Few wrestlers are capable of portraying these characters all so perfectly, but Edge did, and he did it for a long time.
Eventually Edge and Christian split, and Edge did a lot with his career. I'd go into everything this man did, but I'd be here typing all week! So instead I'll skip ahead to the Rated R Superstar. After years and years of busting his ass for the WWE and putting his body through all sorts of hell, they finally decided to put the WWE Title on him. It was great to watch a man who began as a tag team wrestler, get moved into the singles mid card, make his way up the card, and finally receive the big belt. Say what you will about his first run, but he went on for 10 more reigns as the champion! Eleven World / WWE Title runs, and thirty one championships all together have been held by this man. Regardless if it was a tag team title, mid card title, or the all powerful World title, Edge was able to belong at the top of the list with everybody else under him. Whether heel or face he would get the reaction he was after and fans loved to hate him or loved to love him. He was a perfect champion from beginning to end.
So this brings me to the end, WrestleMania 27. How perfectly fitting of an end for one man to have. He didn't have the glamorous send off like a Shawn Michaels or Ric Flair. His imminent retirement wasn't the talk of the wrestling world. That wouldn't have felt like "Edge." Instead, he was in a great feud with up and comer Alberto Del Rio, had his best friend Christian in his corner, and successfully defended HIS World Heavyweight Championship on the grandest stage of them all. Then he walked out, told us what is going on, and thanked the fans. There is no doubt that SmackDown will hold something for this man on Friday, and I personally can't wait to witness the final chapter of one of the greatest, LEGENDARY superstars of all time. After watching this man entertain me for a large portion of my life, it is with great pride and pleasure that I say "THANK YOU EDGE!"
So here I am with another installment of "Seak Says!" Today I want to talk about the career of Adam "Edge" Copeland. I haven't read the Smackdown spoilers and I'm writing this before Friday so I'm not moved to write specifically by his farewell. This is all my memories of a man who will truly be missed.
It is an extreme rarity that a fan can sit back and watch a legendary career unfold from start to finish. I want to focus on the word legendary real quick, because I feel it is a word thrown around far too easily these days. A legend must be able to stand the test of time, never overshadowed by it's peers. To be a legend, you must hold yourself to legendary standards from your beginning to your end. This second part eliminates some of the greats in this business from being legends, in my honest opinion. The likes of Hulk Hogan and Ric Flair stand out in this regard. They would be considered legends, had they not tarnished their careers in their later stages. But a look back at the full career of "Edge" easily puts him into the "legend" category.
Like I said earlier, in this business, a fan rarely sees a legend from start to finish. I was lucky enough to witness Edge from his early years to his final goodbye, and for that I'm grateful. Everyone knows Edge debuted in WWF in 1998, yet few remember his brief run in WCW......against Meng......and I'm pretty sure that was it. I was a WCW fan at the time and I vaguely remember the match. Watching it now on YouTube jogs my memory a bit, but that was a long time ago. All of my real memories of Edge begin in the WWF. I can still remember his promos hyping him up when he was new, walking around darkened streets, beating up random people, and then coming to the ring through the crowd when he finally started to wrestle. He was different right from the start, and he fit his persona perfectly. From the way he dressed, to the way he spoke, to his overall look all together, he screamed loner and he had everyone believing it.
Next up for his career was a faction known as The Brood. They were a strange group that really is a look back at where WWF was at the time. They personified "different" when WWF wanted to be different. Better yet, he was paired with his "brother" Christian, and any time these two are together we witnessed magic. Their chemistry in the ring is something that any tag team could look at today and learn a few things from. Their part in this faction also lead to a feud with the Hardy Boyz (they spelled it with a "z" back than because it was cool!) which went on to give us some of the greatest tag team matches in the history of not just the WWE, but of wrestling as a whole. I challenge anybody who has yet to see these classic matches, from ladders to tables and eventually to TLC, to watch them right now and NOT be amazed by what these teams did. It's impossible! During this time Edge and Christian stood head and shoulders above the other tag teams. Other great teams such as The Dudleyz (there's that z again!) and the Hardyz where there with them, but in the end proved to be one trick ponies. Take away the hardcore atmosphere and the Dudleys had nothing, take away the high spots and the Hardys had nothing, yet E&C still managed to shine. This is where I believe Edge really came into his character. If you watch the comedy skits with Edge, and later on a few with Mick Foley, and you can see the range this man was capable of. To go from an absolute loner, to a vampire (lmfao), to a cocky comedy heel is no easy task. Few wrestlers are capable of portraying these characters all so perfectly, but Edge did, and he did it for a long time.
Eventually Edge and Christian split, and Edge did a lot with his career. I'd go into everything this man did, but I'd be here typing all week! So instead I'll skip ahead to the Rated R Superstar. After years and years of busting his ass for the WWE and putting his body through all sorts of hell, they finally decided to put the WWE Title on him. It was great to watch a man who began as a tag team wrestler, get moved into the singles mid card, make his way up the card, and finally receive the big belt. Say what you will about his first run, but he went on for 10 more reigns as the champion! Eleven World / WWE Title runs, and thirty one championships all together have been held by this man. Regardless if it was a tag team title, mid card title, or the all powerful World title, Edge was able to belong at the top of the list with everybody else under him. Whether heel or face he would get the reaction he was after and fans loved to hate him or loved to love him. He was a perfect champion from beginning to end.
So this brings me to the end, WrestleMania 27. How perfectly fitting of an end for one man to have. He didn't have the glamorous send off like a Shawn Michaels or Ric Flair. His imminent retirement wasn't the talk of the wrestling world. That wouldn't have felt like "Edge." Instead, he was in a great feud with up and comer Alberto Del Rio, had his best friend Christian in his corner, and successfully defended HIS World Heavyweight Championship on the grandest stage of them all. Then he walked out, told us what is going on, and thanked the fans. There is no doubt that SmackDown will hold something for this man on Friday, and I personally can't wait to witness the final chapter of one of the greatest, LEGENDARY superstars of all time. After watching this man entertain me for a large portion of my life, it is with great pride and pleasure that I say "THANK YOU EDGE!"
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