In aviation, was the F-104 a dud, or could it compete with today's multirole aircraft?

The F-104 is a manifestation of the idea that less is more. in a time when fighters were becoming more and more massive the starfighter was an odd duck, a small tubular air frame fitted with small stubby wings and powered by a massive turbojet engine.

to compare it and its ability to that of other aircraft, let alone more modern fighters is very tricky. it wasn't a very successful fighter, and it is associated with many publicity disasters such as the Lockheed bribe scandals where Lockheed bribed local officials in Europe and Japan to buy the F-104 although it seemed a lesser fighter. in Europe it is also remembered for the high accident rate it had, especially with the luftwaffe.

but even with all of this the pilots loved the starfighter and believed it was the best of its kind, if you knew how to use it correctly. the was no other fighter in the air for some 18 years that could match the F-104 in a zoom climb and above 500 knots, not until the F-15 was introduced, which was two generations ahead of the starfighter. it would accelerate better than anything and when in an unloaded condition (at zero G) would literally disappear, its small silhouette only added to that elusiveness. it was also surprisingly a flexible air frame that could and was adapted to carry a lot of munition types, the late versions of the F-104 had a total of 9 pylons.

on the other hand it wasn't very maneuverable. at its corner speed it could do 6-6.5 g turns, which by today's standards is 2-3 g's too low. it would also bleed its airspeed quite quickly while maneuvering so it couldn't sustain sharp 6 g turns, relatively to most fighters. it had a dangerous tendency to pitch up and enter a deep stall condition, it demanded a high approach speed and thus a rather long runway.

I believe that the F-104 is a triumph of engineering and performance, an aircraft that was designed in the 50's and could challenge aircraft well ahead of its time. but it and its performance wasn't suited for the western air forces and their way of fighting. it didn't had the range, the endurance, the carrying capacity and the avionic sophistication needed. it was like an exceptional sprinter athlete in a decathlon, it had abilities few could match, but many of their aspects weren't suited for the roles it was meant to fill.

on a side note, many of the 4.5 generation fighters that evolved from earlier 4th generation fighters became heavier, and thus slower and less maneuverable then the earlier models. the F-15E might not be able to follow the F-104 in a climb like the F-15A could. but the F-104 could not support any of the advanced avionics (Radars, computers, encrypted tactical communications, Navigation systems, electronic warfare suits and so on) that modern fighters are expected to carry, it would be simply too heavy.

EDIT:added a little more information.