Saga of the Sub-Mariner #1

Marvel launched this twelve-issue limited series in 1988 with a cover that puts Namor front and center — snarling, fists clenched, every inch the furious prince as chaos erupts around him, with the underwater spires of Atlantis crumbling in the background amid crowds of figures caught in the destruction. Rich Buckler's cover art sets an appropriately epic tone, promising a comprehensive retelling of the Sub-Mariner's life from his earliest beginnings — teased by the tagline "the Birth of a Legend!" — all the way through catastrophic loss. Writers Roy Thomas and Dann Thomas were the right team to shepherd this kind of sweeping retrospective, and issue #1, "A Legend A-Borning," is a fine starting point for anyone who wants the full story of Marvel's original antihero.