Rarely in life are we given second chances. This applies absolutely to wrestling. For every Darren Drosdov (may he rest in peace) and Magnum TA, there’s a Katsuyori Shibata and Sting.
When Adam Copeland had to step away from being Edge in 2011, it was a hard pill for many to swallow. That damned injury from his 2003 match against Eddie Guerrero on an episode of Smackdown shook his hourglass so much that quite a lot of sand was shifted.
The Rated R Superstar, who had memorable feuds with John Cena, Randy Orton, and The Undertaker, had to say a bittersweet goodbye. The Attitude Era legend, who was aligned with The Brood and The Ministry of Darkness and his best friend, fellow goofball Christian, had hung up his boots. On the April 11 episode of Monday Night Raw, Edge relinquished his title and with a heavy heart, bid farewell to his time in the ring.
For nine long years, the product felt like a different place. Edge had been a mainstay, and now he was just…gone. Sure, he’d pop up here and there – on one occasion almost facing a deadly curb stomp by Seth Rollins. Edge still didn’t gear up during this time. Perhaps he was content to stay home and raise his family, but it’s truly hard for any wrestler to truly stay gone. There are itches that forever need scratching.
So he did what any wrestler would do. He scratched. He fought. With the alliance of time on his side, he was able to make the kind of recovery befitting of a miracle.
Summerslam, 2019. WWE’s residential drifter Elias attempted to serenade the Toronto fans with a song that, as always, would be interrupted. On this event, Alterbridge’s “Metalingus” would echo through the night, and Edge, decked out in street clothes, had no words. He had pent-up action.
After spearing Elias out of his musical boots in 2019, speculation ran rampant. He hit his first spear in many years, and the crowd rejoiced as rose-tinted glasses from the 2000s were fully placed in front of joyful, tearful eyes.
Still, with everyone wondering, the future was unclear. Adam Copeland would try to silence these rumors and speculations any time they’d crop up. And…it made sense. How could Edge come back from something liable to kill him? Not that this anticipation based on little would die out, however.
I myself hoped beyond hope itself that he would don the gear and the jacket once more as Alterbridge would blast through arenas and stadiums once more. The doom-scrolling of rumors and hints and hype was overwhelming.
The Rated-R Superstar quelled such rabble then, with his 2020 Royal Rumble return. Amid a sea of fans, he swam out and Texas screamed in adulation as he ran to the ring and lasted until the final three before being eliminated by Roman Reigns.
Edge had since spent his time making up for the lost years. All the days that were stolen from him got to be made back up as he took on the talents he otherwise would not have faced before. Seth Rollins to Finn Balor and Roman Reigns to Daniel Bryan, Edge made matches we never thought we’d get to see become a reality. Fans were even treated to a dream match with AJ Styles and a reunion with Rey Mysterio.
Competing for title opportunities and engaging in blood feuds, Edge has done a lot to wrap up his career the way he wants it to. In some cases, he had a lot of fun.
Whether it was the epic rivalry with Seth Rollins that would see the return of his Brood demeanor, an epic triple threat at WrestleMania 37, or the war with The Judgement Day, Edge was leaving his stamp on this era.
That Rollins feud felt like it went on forever, yet neither man faltered and it never got stale. And I mean that in the best way. They told an epic story that was compelling as the months passed, with that threatened curb stomp years ago being the catalyst. From the first Summerslam in front of fans to Smackdown to that Hell in a Cell match at Crown Jewel, this was one of the company’s hottest feuds in 2021.
And he brought Beth Phoenix along for the ride in feuds with The Miz & Maryse alongside The Judgement Day. This run has been fun. The legend’s body may not be to the level of his younger days, but he’s worked around it and made up for it with promos that could grip viewers in silent rage and comedic timing. Of course he did, he’s an absolute professional and a legend who has studied this industry. This was a wizened, learned veteran who has made the best and most of this last chance. That’s a trait found in plenty of wrestlers still doing the dance all these years later; the recognition of what can’t be done anymore, and making do with what is still possible – working around the limitations while still telling a compelling story.
Honestly, his leadership of, and later struggles with Judgement Day will go down as vital to the history of the stable’s massive growth. Finding himself in Brood leader Gangrel’s shoes, he was eschewed from the group, and swore vengeance ever since, a fire burning with each transgression. He even went to hell with a Demon as he entered Hell in a Cell with Finn Balor at WrestleMania 39 and won.
I’m genuinely so glad I got to see him on my television once more since I didn’t appreciate him enough growing up. I even managed to see him team up with his wife Beth Phoenix at the 2022 Royal Rumble while wearing an Edge shirt! I love them both – they’re everybody’s wrestling parents. That was so cool, and I’ll never forget hearing Metalingus as he ran to the ring for the first (and likely last) time in my life.
In recent months, Edge captured the attention of fans by mentioning his time on his WWE contract is known to be done after the August 18, 2023 episode of Smackdown ahead of a World Heavyweight Championship contender match against Rey Mysterio and AJ Styles. Edge would not win this, but would face the fresher Grayson Waller in Madison Square Garden in a match he deemed as “sink or swim”, and as the defeated Waller stared up into his weathered eyes, Edge told the youth that he swam.
On August 11, he proposed a challenge against a man he has never faced before on the main roster in a singles match. Sheamus. Sharing that the Celtic Warrior helped inspire him to return to the ring, Edge was just as appreciated as the leader of the Brawling Brutes mentioned how Edge was always good to him when WWE took the Irish wrestler under their employment.
The next week, they fought. A man who had his career revitalized against Gunther and became known for how stiff he was brought every test in his muscles against the mettle of a man who thought he would never be able to step foot in a ring again. They were a great favorite and they fought.
The beefy Sheamus gathered the veteran under his immense and terrible flesh and battered him senselessly. Edge, knowing the tricks of the trade, fought back with every fiber of his being. Every kick-out mattered, specifically the ones where you could see his eyes soaking in his family on the hard cam side as if that was the only thing that mattered; as though he were fighting for their very lives. Ultimately, with his signature Spear, Edge won on the night that celebrated twenty-five years of his employment.
I’d say that would be the perfect final sentence of the ultimate chapter within his storied career. What a match.
Whether or not Edge re-signs with WWE, goes to finish his career with tag team partner Christian Cage in AEW, or walks away from wrestling completely, he has left another mark on the industry. While I may not be ready to see him go, I know it will have been worth the ride.
He’s got more than just the house that made him, as he’s to star as Ares in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, with the new season to come on Disney+. He’s got a litany of projects he could pursue if he so wished, for he has naught anymore to prove. Yet, I’m not ready to be in a time without Edge, as it feels like we still just now got him back. But he’s leaving on his terms – not fate’s, not ours, his.
Whatever waits him in the days to come, I’m excited for. Whether or not he stops, whatever waits for him on the shore, he’s deserved it. All is said and done and the sand within the hourglass is infinitesimal and waning and nothing more needs to be done, unless it is by his say-so.
I’m glad I got to appreciate Edge one last time. So few are the instances we get to say goodbye to the things we grew up with in a meaningful way. All the sunrises and sunsets he will have when all is said and done forevermore will be grateful ones, for a life well lived. But for now, the sun is getting low, and I’d like to cap this off with lyrics of a sea shanty sung by men who have traveled much like Edge has, to the tune of “Leave Her Johnny”.
“Oh, the wind was foul and the sea ran high
Leave her, Johnny, leave her
She shipped it green and none went by
And it’s time for us to leave her
Leave her, Johnny, leave her
Oh, leave her, Johnny, leave her
For the voyage is long and the winds don’t blow
And it’s time for us to leave her”
