I think reed is genuinely likeable, just not very socially typical. Kind of like a 50s dad minus the weird racism. Or like the professor from the powerpuff girls
Jeez, I made a response to this and then my computer froze.
That archetype is exactly where Reed comes from.
Reed has the benefit of having foil characters in the Marvel universe who absorbed a lot of negative qualities that would make us dislike him.
He's portrayed as having terrible business sense -- contrasted with Tony Stark, who is an engineering genius who understands the important of patents and copyright. But since being "useless" in business is a flaw most people relate to, Tony ends up getting the brunt of resentment. Because don't get it twisted, Reed HAS invented weapons before...
Misogyny isn't so relatable, however, and any 1960s "fair for its day" characterization Reed may have is nothing compared to how Hank Pym acts. Hank Pym being "The Rude Genius" snowballed writers into putting more issues on his plate than someone like Reed's.
Likewise, Bruce Banner is the Angry Genius.
But since Reed is the Awkward Genius, that makes Henry McCoy the Super-Nice Genius. (The First Class prequels ended up making a much more Reed-like personality for Hank.)
Doctor Strange usually plays off these guys as the Considerate Genius, thinking about long-term plans and multi-dimensional consequences, which makes him a bit of a control freak..
Charles Xavier is the Emotionally Intelligent Genius, a great therapist, but also very manipulative.
And leaving T'Challa and Doctor Doom as the politically savvy geniuses: arrogant, commanding, domineering... T'Challa's arrogance has to be matched with a community that depends on him, while Doom being a villain allows his arrogance to go unchecked and we have the pleasure to watch him chase wildly self-centered goals.
See what I mean? In a massive story with so many similar characters, Reed becomes more likable because any massive flaws get absorbed by other characters until Reed is left as being generally a likeable doofus. Special shout out to Peter Parker, who is ironically so busy trying to help everyone that people assume his inability to keep personal promises is because he's more like Reed than he really is. XD
This whole conversation has me ready for the Illuminati. Marvel Studios, don't disappoint me... I'm beginning to care again...
