* Sub-Mariner had multiple good stories in FANTASTIC FOUR (issues 4, 6, 9, 14, 27, 33, and ANNUAL 1) it was only when Namor got his own monthly series that he turned dull, largely for me due to the lackluster Gene Colan art.
More than the art, I think the real factor is that Namor has, outside of World War II (when he was battling the Axis), never worked as well as a hero as he does as a villain. Marvel should just admit that fact and make him one of the big-three bad guys in their canon, along with doom and magneto
Well that's a possible expanation, that taking Sub-Mariner out of World War II was like taking Dracula out of Transilvania.
I think Namor started to lose it when his adventures focused on Atlantis and palace intrigue, rather than his interactions and reclusive scorn for humans. When the adventures turned to Atlantis, a lot of the compelling mystery of the character evaporated.
That began, I think, when he got a regular monthly feature in
TALES TO ASTONISH 70-101, from 1965-1968. Issues 70-85 were mostly by Gene Colan. 86-101 were slightly more interesting with the return of Bill Everett to the series.
Then Namor got his own
SUB-MARINER series, which lasted a surprising 72 issues, from 1968-1974. Everett had a part in the series roughly from 50-65, up until his death.
I think some at Marvel saw the same wisdom you did in how to treat Namor, at which point for a while he was featured in
SUPER-VILLAIN TEAM-UP.
The character also worked well in
DEFENDERS, which is I think where Namor had his longest run, in several series.
The last I read was the
Giffen/Dematteis/Maguire run in 2005.
