Namor, as he is known in the Marvel universe, was one of the first heroes featured in the mainstream Marvel universe, also known as Earth-616. Namor is the ruler of Atlantis and is a half-human, half-Atlantean aristocracy.
He was the first of Marvel’s three Golden Age superheroes, alongside the original Human Torch and Captain America, to be debuted. He has been a member of some of the most elite teams in the Marvel Universe, including the Avengers and X-Men, and even fought with Captain America during World War II.
Due to his rage and arrogance, he is believed to be more of an anti-hero who will go to any length to achieve his goals. Not only was he one of the original heroes, but he was also the first mutant in comics. So, where does this Atlantean aristocracy fit into the Marvel Universe? Let us find out, shall we?
Namor: Origins
Namor was created by Bill Everett and made his debut in 1939 in Timely Comics’ Marvel Comics #1. In 1920, Namor’s father, Leonard McKenzie, was on an expedition to find the Helmet of Power. His ship got stuck on icy floes, so he decided to use some explosives to get the boat out. Unknown to him, these explosives caused significant damage to the city of Atlantis, which was right below them.
The Atlantean ruler, Emperor Tha-Korr, commanded his daughter and warriors to go to the surface and investigate the problem. Princess Fen decided to go alone as she did not want to put anybody else at risk. After arriving on the ship, Fen immediately gets captured by the ship’s crew due to her not being able to speak the language and not being able to establish any communication. However, her time onboard led to Princess Fen and Leonard falling in love, as he had found her beautiful from the day he set his sight on her. They were then married to each other aboard the ship.
Emperor Tha-Korr sent out a search party for his daughter many weeks after receiving no news of her whereabouts. After discovering the ship, the Atlantean warriors attacked everyone on the boat, thinking they had been keeping Fen prisoner. But unfortunately, before Fen could stop the attack and convey the truth, Leonard McKenzie was already killed.
Fen then came back to Atlantis and found out that her marriage had resulted in pregnancy. Soon, she gave birth to Namor, the first hybrid born between a human and an Atlantean.
What makes Namor so powerful?
Much of Namor’s powers come from his Atlantean heritage. He is a powerful mutant who has all the powers that Atlanteans possess, like breathing underwater, a longer life span, and physical abilities. However, his abilities are much more significant than common Atlanteans due to his royal status. He is a unique hybrid of Homo mermanus and Homo superior physiologies.
Namor is one of the strongest characters in the Marvel Universe. He can easily pick up buses or ships. He is strong enough to stop attacks from both Thor and Iron Man simultaneously with ease. He is capable of moving at incredible speeds. He can create whirlpools by swimming in circles and can reach up to a rate of over 345mph or 300 knots. He has superhuman reflexes and is capable of easily dodging bullets. He’s fast enough to make the naked eye miss his movement. He has incredible stamina and durability due to his mutant and royal status.
His body can easily handle the immense underwater pressure. He is bulletproof and fireproof. He can quickly deal with high-impact attacks without being injured. Namor’s body can heal itself by just stepping in water. His healing rate is more than any standard Atlantean. He can use marine telepathy to control sea life and relay messages to Atlanteans. He can use animal mimicry to channel the powers of aquatic animals like whales or electric eels and even use their radar powers.
He has the capability of Atmokinesis, which means he can manipulate rain and storm clouds to cause heavy rain. The rain is severe enough that it even extinguished Johnny Storm’s flames. After Atlantis kidnapped Hydro-Man, Namor siphoned part of his powers and uses this power to cause massive floods. He possesses vestigial wings on both his ankles, which help him fly. Although the origin of this power is unknown, he can fly faster than a military aircraft.
Namor’s greatest weapon is the Trident of Neptune. The original Trident of Neptune was forged by cyclopes using adamantine and Neptune’s essence. The Trident is a powerful weapon that can manipulate water and create forcefields. When the Atlanteans led astray and started following Set, Neptune and his loyal followers fought Set on earth and defeated the snake god. Neptune lived with the Atlanteans for a while, bringing an age of peace. Before he returned to Olympus, he had a replica of his Trident constructed in the Brazier of Living Flame, leaving it behind for the ruler of Atlantis.
Deadly story of Namor Vs. The Avengers
The story begins in issue #9 of The Avengers: Earth’s Mightiest Heroes (2018). We see Tiger Shark and Stingray locked in a fight, as Stingray was out in the ocean on a boat, apparently on vacation. The two take their fight to the seas, where Stingray urges Tiger to let him help and that his sister Diane, to whom Stingray is married, misses her brother a lot. During the fight, Namor suddenly makes an appearance.
He tells the two that they have two choices: either they join him in the war against humans or leave the ocean immediately. Stingray tries to talk some sense into him by telling him that this is unnecessary, and as his oldest friend from the land, he urges Namor not to make any rash decisions.
Namor repeatedly punches Stingray, breaking his helmet visor and telling him that he no longer has any friends from the surface. He then attacks Stingray mercilessly and finally reveals his War Sharks to destroy him as he is an intruder in the sea, leading to Stingray’s death. Namor then turns to a scared Tiger Shark and asks him the same question, to which Tiger replies that he’s in. The two then swim away to the depths of Atlantis as Namor goes to gather more allies.
The Avengers, constituting Captain America, Iron Man, Thor, Captain Marvel, She-Hulk, and Ghost Rider, come to Atlantis a few days before this. They are soon attacked by Atlantean warriors, although they keep urging that they are not here to fight but to get an audience with their king, Namor.
The fighting ensues for quite some time, with all the Avengers trying to cause minimal damage. Soon, one of the Atlanteans blows a horn, summoning a fantastic Sea Beast, which swallows up Ghost Rider. But thankfully, he does not perish and finds his way out of the Beast’s mouth. The Avengers do not destroy the Sea Beast as they do not want to offend Namor.
Meanwhile, in a different part, Black Panther is trying to find the men from Roxxon held by Namor, but he manages to trip on a booby trap, which summons Namor. Minutes later, Namor arrives. He accuses Black Panther of how he dared to show up to his realm; Avengers arrive at his aid. As the Avengers try to make him listen, he refuses and attacks them. Thor and Iron Man attack Namor, but he quickly stops them, to their surprise.
Even Carol Danvers or She-Hulk can cause no damage. Captain America then steps up and says that the next Avenger Namor faces will be him. Due to their previous history, Namor grants Captain a few minutes to tell their story and why they came. Cap urges him to hand over the culprits because if not, there will be a war in Atlantis, and the Avengers do not want that.
They tried to help Namor and wanted him to receive justice for what happened to Atlantis. They were there to help him in any way possible and hoped Namor would let them do so. Namor tells Cap that he does not want their help and asked them not to come back again. The Avengers can later be seen leaving with the culprits who destroyed Atlantis. Namor then goes to a cave where he comes across Atlantean children and urges them to come with him, stating he would take care of them. But the children swim away.
The children were tired of living in the waste that Atlantis had become and decided to go to earth, thinking the Avengers might be able to help them. But before they could get there, the toxic air had killed the children, as other humans watched on and laughed. Namor then declares that the reason Avengers came was not to prevent war but that it was already the time of war, and he would not be losing; Namor then forms his team, known as Defenders of the Deep, who are something of a contrast to the Avengers of the Earth.
Where else has Namor appeared?
A possible reference was made to Namor in the movie Iron Man 2. On Nick Fury’s map of superhuman activity, there was an indicator in the middle of the ocean, which presumably indicated a being with aquatic abilities, hence Namor.
A live-action Namor movie has been in the works since 2002. David Self wrote a screenplay, and Chris Columbus was in line to direct. Jonathan Mostow was named the director in 2006, and 2009 claimed the project was still alive and ongoing. Kevin Feige told in an interview that specific contracts had left the movie in limbo, and using Namor in a film might be complicated.
Namor has made an appearance in many animations. He had his segment in The Marvel Super Heroes and was voiced by John Vernon. He appeared in the Spider-Man episode called “Wrath of the Sub-Mariner” and was voiced by Vic Perrin. He also appeared in the Spider-Man and his Amazing Friends episode “7 Little Superheroes” and was expressed by William Woodson. He appeared in the Fantastic Four episode “Now Comes the Sub-Mariner,” voiced by James Warwick. He appeared in Avengers: United They Stand attack “To Rule Atlantis,” expressed by Raoul Trujillo. He appeared in the Fantastic Four: World’s Greatest Heroes episodes “Imperius Rex” and “Atlantis Attacks” and was told by Michael Adamthwaite.
He was set to appear as an antagonist in Fox Kids’ Daredevil animated series, but the show never went into production. He was also slated to appear in The Fantastic Four but was banned due to rights issues, and instead, a thinly-veiled substitute of the name Prince Triton was created for the series.
What does the future hold for Namor?
Namor: The Sub-Mariner is one of the most prominent Marvel characters but still hasn’t appeared in the MCU. Although there were expectations, he wasn’t shown as a part of the Illuminati in Dr. Strange 2 either. But aside from this fact, fans are convinced that the Atlantean ruler will soon appear in the MCU with the upcoming Phase 4 movie, Black Panther: Wakanda Forever. There has been a long debate surrounding the antagonist for the sequel to Black Panther, but there has been no definite answer so far.
Recent set photos show there will most likely be underwater scenes, which again points out that Namor could be a part of the movie. Black Panther does not boast a vast catalog of rogues in his story, and the impressive ones like Klaw and Killmonger were already used in the first movie. Although Sub-Mariner isn’t a Black Panther villain, he does have a long-standing rivalry with T’Challa, which can easily be explored in the film, giving fans some fascinating stuff.
There have been speculations about who might be cast for the role of Namor, but there have been no official confirmations so far. The Sub-Mariner remains a favorite candidate for the fans for the post of the upcoming villain of Black Panther 2. Unless Marvel Studios announces something different, he’s likely to remain the fan’s choice.
The Sub-Mariner has always been extremely powerful and even more so recently. He has had quite a rocky relationship with the people from Earth. Still, he has always been a benevolent ruler for the people of Atlantis, to the extent that he even sacrificed the woman he loved to save Atlantis. Although his character can be called morally gray, he will do anything to protect Atlantis and its inhabitants, so crossing certain lines is no problem. The only thing remains to see the mighty power of Namor on screen, and if everything goes as planned (more like our wishes), hopefully, we’ll have a live-action Namor soon enough.