There are few Superstars who can claim to have been part of the very first episode of SmackDown in 1999 and continued to star on the show for the better part of a decade. "Rated R Superstar" Edge is one of them. As part of The Brood, he established himself as one of the bright young stars of WWE's future. With Christian, he entertained millions of fans as one-half of a tag team totally reeking of awesomeness. By the time he broke free of the constraints of tag team wrestling and was drafted to SmackDown to be one of its top babyfaces, he had become of the company's breakout stars. His match with Eddie Guerrero on the September 26, 2002 episode of the show was one of the finest in show history and really demonstrated just how much of a big-match performer Edge was. Still, it would not be until he developed his Rated R Superstar persona and rose to the top of the industry as its most hated villain, then returned to the blue brand that he really established himself as the greatest heel in the history of the show. It was as the hated narcissist, the egotistical and opportunistic bad boy that he served as the centerpiece of the brand throughout 2007 and '08. Always in the World Heavyweight Championship picture, he was consistently squaring off with the likes of The Undertaker, Batista, Triple H and Jeff Hardy. More importantly, he was always looking for an advantage, a scenario or situation that he could manipulate to get the desired outcome. One such scenario came in the form of a relationship with then-general manager Vickie Guerrero. He pretended to love her and benefited exponentially from her preferential treatment. Then he got himself caught cheating with Alicia Fox and all of that went away. But he rebounded. He reunited with Vickie and continued to enjoy success atop the brand until a torn achilles tendon put him out of action for the second-half of 2009. When he returned to SmackDown in 2010, he wasted little time capturing the heavyweight title from Kane and reigned over the brand as a beloved babyface, making a complete 180-degree turn from the man fans had so enjoyed booing years earlier. After dispatching of the Devil's Favorite Demon and escaping a feud with Dolph Ziggler and former main squeeze Vickie Guerrero, he successfully defended his title against Alberto Del Rio in the culmination of a program that had picked up considerable steam on the blue brand. Unfortunately, it would be the last time Edge was involved in a match of meaning. Just weeks after beating Del Rio at WrestleMania 27, he would retire from the ring due to a severe neck injury. While he rose to prominence as a main event star on Raw, it was his time on SmackDown that ultimately landed him in the Hall of Fame in 2012.
Erik Beaston is a freelance pro wrestling writer who likes long walks in the park, dandelions and has not quite figured out that this introduction is not for Match.com. He resides in Parts Unknown, where he hosts weekly cookouts with Kane, The Ultimate Warrior, Papa Shango and The Boogeyman. Be jealous.
