>>105117543 1) The first 9 issues of Marvel Mystery, where he tries to conquer the surface world, falls for Betty Dean, tries to 'reform' but gets the electric chair for the murders he committed, then breaks out and fights the Human Torch. It's the first truly significant story arc in Marvel history, and it's still canon. Also one of the first multi-part stories in comics.
2) The Quest for Atlantis, in Namor's Tales to Astonish series from issue 70-76, wherein Namor tries to reclaim Atlantis from Krang, years before Aquaman had a similar arc in Adventure.
3) The Depths #1-5, told from the point of view of a man investigating the legend of Namor, very heavily based on the tone of the very first Namor story. Namor is a frightening, shadowy presence in the story and definitely not the protagonist. It's one of the few attempts to build a horror story around a 'superhero' where the 'hero' is the monster that works.
Roy Thomas and John Byrne's runs are also decent (though Byrne's skews to the comedic), and Bill Everett's return to the character in the 70s was pretty great. Namor's appearances as a villain in early FF are also good, aside from the story where he becomes a movie producer.
I like Aquaman, but up until Aparo's run, he really didn't have any notable stories. You could even argue that it's Peter David who is the sole reason Aquaman is still a major player in the DCU after Crisis.
