Namor the Sub-Mariner has maintained an air of royalty throughout eight decades in comics. During that time, he formed a lot of relationships, both friendly and romantic. Sometimes the life of a king can be lonely, but there are those that Namor trusts to get close to him and give him honest advice.
Namor has found himself an enemy with some of those he’s trusted, but they always seem to make amends. Some of this comes from Namor’s aggressive, often unlikeable personality. Sometimes, it’s because the people that have gotten close to Namor know him to be very protective of Atlantis and the oceans.
10/10 Namor’s Relationship With Emma Frost Tied Him To The X-Men
Sebastian Shaw sent Emma Frost to negotiate with Namor during her initial time with the Hellfire Club. Shaw wanted Namor to become the White King of the Hellfire Club. Emma Frost and Namor had a brief affair that drove Shaw to jealousy.
When Norman Osborn took over S.H.I.E.L.D., he formed a Cabal to help protect his position. Emma Frost and Namor were both invited, but Emma kept their past secret. After the Avengers drove Osborn from power, Namor stayed with the X-Men, often flirting with Emma in front of her husband, Cyclops.
9/10 Marrina Stole Namor’s Heart In A Short Amount Of Time
Namor and the Invisible Woman came to the aid of Alpha Flight in rescuing Marrina from the Master. As she recuperated, Namor found a kindred soul in Marrina. Perhaps, it was how alone she truly was as the only one of her species on Earth.
Namor and Marrina fell in love quickly, but her guilt over her alien instincts kept her away for a brief time. Namor then led the Avengers and Alpha Flight to rescue Marrina from the Atlantean warlord Attuma. They lived happily for a time before Marrina’s alien nature led to her apparent death as a seaborne leviathan from The Black Knight’s Ebony Blade.
8/10 Betty Dean Was Namor’s First Ally Outside Of Atlantis
Policewoman Betty Dean met Namor soon after his debut in New York City. To contact Namor, she pretended to drown. Bystanders observed Namor helping women in distress. After seeing a Nazi submarine, she convinced Namor to fight with America against the Nazis. She even helped Namor and the original Human Torch come to a truce.
Throughout World War II, Betty assisted Namor against the Axis and domestic villains. She even aided him after the war, but the two grew distant. When Namor returned, the now-older Dean became guardian to his cousin Namorita, showing how highly Namor thought of her. Eventually, she died protecting Namor from attack.
7/10 The Original Human Torch Was A Rival And A Friend
Initially, Namor and the original Human Torch were rivals. Even working together against the Axis in World War II, they would bicker and occasionally battle. After World War II, Namor lost contact with his teammates in the Invaders, not reaching out to Thomas Raymond when the Torch vanished.
Namor’s attitude as King of Atlantis has brought him into conflict with the Torch. Under the influence of the psychic ghost of a dead friend initiated by Charles Xavier, Namor even beheaded the original Torch. His old teammate set that aside to help Namor defeat the mental entity that had possessed another body with the aid of the Serpent Crown.
6/10 Doctor Strange Was His Closest Ally In The Defenders
After regaining his memory, Namor first found allies in the original Defenders. Among those, his closest relationship was with Doctor Strange. Namor knew he could go to Stephen Strange if he needed help. Unfortunately, Namor resented the Sorcerer Supreme compelling his presence.
Doctor Strange mended this breach of trust by visiting Namor in person for help rather than using magic. Even after the Defenders disbanded, Namor would return to contacting Strange for help. Taking the retconned existence of the Illuminati into account, their shared secrets may have something to do with that trust.
5/10 Namora Was His Cousin, Sharing His Background And Powers
Namora first appeared in the Sub-Mariner’s comics in 1947. She would go with Namor on many adventures and have many on her own going into the 1950s. When the villain Destiny attacked Atlantis and wiped Namor’s memory, she spent years trying to find him.
She did marry and give birth to a daughter that she named Namorita. This baby was a clone Namora kept secret due to Atlantean taboos against cloning. Everyone believed her poisoned by the Lemurian villain Llyra, who was a rival for the affections of a Lemurian prince. The Agents of Atlas would discover Namora to be alive discovered alive.
4/10 Namor Protected Namorita
Namorita first met and aided Namor against Llyra. Namor set her up in New York with his old friend Betty Dean Prentiss. Namorita would take her last name to show how close she felt to the woman.
Namorita also became a close ally to Namor. He held her in such high esteem that he hid her origins as a clone of her mother from her. Namorita would throw herself into her adventures with the New Warriors, especially after Atlantis banned her after her origins became known in the undersea kingdom.
3/10 An Ambitious Villain took Namor’s Truest Love Dorma.
Dorma pined for Namor from afar until he returned to Atlantis after regaining his memory. She was jealous of Namor’s affection for the Invisible Woman, even trying to kill her. When she rescued Namor from the warlord Krang, she and Namor fell in love.
They held a grand wedding, but Llyra kidnapped Dorma and took her place. When her plan to become Queen of Atlantis failed because of Atlantean law, she slew Dorma by stranding her out of the water. This loss has defined Namor.
2/10 Captain America Has Been Namor’s Ally Since World War II
In World War II, Namor found allies in the superhero team the Invaders. His closest ally in that team was Steve Rogers, the first Captain America. Cap saw a side of Namor that few could discern from Namor’s over-the-top personality. Cap saw a man that cared for others, especially his own people.
That trust between Captain America and Namor stretches into the present. Captain America testified in court on Namor’s behalf. When the ghost of an old friend from World War II possessed Namor, Captain America was the one who reached him, breaking the hold of the Serpent Crown.
When Johnny Storm found Namor, he unleashed a man with a broken mind. Even in his rage against the surface world, Namor found someone that he wanted. He became infatuated with Susan Storm, now known as Susan Richards, the Invisible Woman. Storm found Namor attractive, but love wasn’t there.
Their flirtation has sometimes bordered on an emotional affair. Yet, the Invisible Woman remains in love with Reed Richards. Namor has extended his fondness for Susan to the rest of the Fantastic Four, even the man that won her heart. Multiple alternate realities have explored the possibility of Namor and Sue together, it remains conclusive that Namor’s intensity and magnetism cannot sway a heart from true love.