Triumph (comics)
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| Triumph | |
|---|---|
 Triumph #3, artist Mike S. Miller |
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| Publication information | |
| Publisher | DC Comics |
| First appearance | Justice League America #92 (September 1994) |
| Created by | Mark Waid & Brian Augustyn (writers) Howard Porter (artist) |
| In-story information | |
| Alter ego | William MacIntyre |
| Team affiliations | Justice League Justice League Task Force |
| Abilities | Ability to control the electromagnetic spectrum |
Triumph is a fictional character, a former superhero in the DC Comics universe who first appeared in Justice League America #92 (September 1994), and was created by Brian Augustyn, Mark Waid and Howard Porter, though the character is primarily associated with writer Christopher Priest. He is not to be confused with fellow DC Comics property, the Golden Age hero Captain Triumph.
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[edit] Publication history
Via a retcon in a three part story running through Justice League America #92, Justice League Task Force #16, and Justice League International (Vol. 2) #68, he was revealed to have been a founding member of the Justice League, serving as their leader. On his first mission with the fledgling Justice League, Triumph seemingly "saved the world", but was teleported into a dimensional limbo that also affected the timestream, resulting in no one having any memory of him. He also starred in a significant portion of the Justice League Task Force comic (issues #0 and 16-37).
The character Triumph (real name: William MacIntyre, sometimes spelled William McIntyre) was portrayed as a hot-headed, arrogant, and self-righteous individual who felt he was "denied his destiny" to become one of Earth's greatest heroes. When he first returned from the dimensional limbo to the modern era, Triumph's meeting with Justice League International quickly devolved into a violent confrontation. His attitude would ultimately result in his expulsion from the Justice League Task Force. Alternatively, it could be seen that J'onn fired Triumph because of Triumph regularly not consulting J'onn. Dissatisfied with the infrequency of JLTF missions, he founded a second team to fight perpetrators of violent crime. In JLTF #30, Triumph receives a wishing candle from Neron, which the Ray and Gypsy unwittingly light in JLTF #35. Writer Christopher Priest has stated that this lighting gave Triumph back his lost decade of life and that his soul now belongs to Neron, explaining his future appearances as an evil character.
[edit] Fall from Grace
Later during DC's 1990s resurrection of the JLA ongoing series, Triumph came under the influence of a malign 5th dimensional imp named Lkz similar to the one possessed by golden age Justice Society member Johnny Thunder. Triumph mind-controlled his former Justice League Task Force teammates Gypsy and the Ray, striking at the newly reformed JLA. The combined forces of the JSA and JLA were required to stop the rampaging Thunderbolt and subdue Triumph.
At the end of this arc, the Spectre transformed Triumph into ice and prepared to smash him with a hammer, but was stopped by a compassionate plea by the angel Zauriel.
His ice form was stored in the Justice League headquarters. Grant Morrison, the writer of this story, later destroyed the headquarters, but forgot to remove Triumph, killing him in the process. He has since been confirmed as deceased.[1]
Several years after Triumph's death, it was revealed that he had unknowingly sired a son named Jonathan. During a college protest against the construction of a nuclear reactor, the deranged teenager manifested superhuman abilities similar to those of his father. After going on a rampage and killing nineteen people (including his girlfriend Christie), Jonathan was confronted by Supergirl and Raven of the Teen Titans. The two used Raven's abilities to enter Jonathan's mind, where they learned that he had been driven insane by fractured visions of Triumph's removal from history and subsequent return, as well as the changes in history caused by Superboy-Prime's actions during Infinite Crisis. Raven was ultimately able to defeat Jonathan by conjuring an image of Triumph, who persuaded his son to stop his murderous actions. Jonathan then disappeared in a blinding flash of light, and exactly what became of him after this is unknown.[2]
Triumph was briefly mentioned by Doctor Light during his battle with Kimiyo Hoshi in Blackest Night. He was mockingly used as an example of once-prominent heroes who were quickly forgotten after their deaths, a fate that Light claimed was in store for Kimiyo.[3]
[edit] Trinity
In the recent series Trinity, McIntyre is revealed as alive in the warped reality created by the forceful extraction of the Trinity formed by Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman. There, he bonded with fellow hero and Trinity stand-in Tomorrow Woman, and both were informed by Hawkman that according to a scroll detailing the true timeline, they were supposed to be dead. In in the end, he took an attack for Tomorrow Woman and saved her life, at the cost of his. He died on her arms, a true hero at last.
[edit] Powers
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Though not fully elaborated, Triumph's powers were said to be control over the electromagnetic spectrum. This power gives Triumph what he calls "360 degree hyper senses," or what could be described as a form of electromagnetic psychometry, which allowed him to perceive and to interpret the entire electromagnetic spectrum. With this ability Triumph could "hear" TV and radio signals and decode satellite transmissions. Triumph also displayed advanced electromagnetic energy manipulation; Superman even remarked that Triumph could kill Superman himself by cutting off the solar energy from Superman's cells to the rest of his body.
Triumph can bend the electromagnetic energy around him for offensive purposes. For instance, he can store energy in his hands and send it through metallic wiring as a powerful electric current. He can project powerful electric blasts from his eyes capable of melting thick plastic or rubber objects, or even shredding through steel alloys like confetti.
Other uses of Triumph's electromagnetic powers include creating a force field around his body granting him invulnerability as long as he is actively thinking about creating one. He has the ability to change the density of matter using his electromagnetic powers, e.g., changing water into a solid ramp. He can absorb and channel energy directed at him, such as fire. Triumph can also use his electromagnetic powers to triple the g-force inside a magnetic field while pressurizing the field to several atmospheres creating a stasis field, essentially freezing everyone inside the field.
Triumph only possesses superhuman powers when he has a connection to the electromagnetic spectrum; without that source he has no powers.
[edit] Love life
Christopher Priest has since revealed[4] that Triumph was written as gay, though it was never officially stated in comics because he "didn’t have an appropriate storyline to deal sensitively with that issue, but that was my subtext for his emotional center: how out of place and out of sync Triumph was with the DC Universe."
However, Triumph's co-creator Bryan Augustyn wrote a story in DC's Showcase series about Triumph's girlfriend, a fashion designer named Melissa.[5] Just prior to Triumph's transformation into a villain, it was mentioned by a metahuman gangster that Melissa had dumped him after an encounter with a shrink ray-wielding villain had left a certain part of his anatomy (implied to be his genitalia) permanently shrunken.[6] Likewise, Priest seemed to be building up a chemistry between Triumph's Justice League Task Force teammate Gypsy and the magnetic hero, culminating in a kiss.[7] Additionally, Triumph was rather forcefully rejected by Fire (Beatriz DaCosta) after making romantic advances.[8] He also fathered a son named Jonathan with an unnamed woman who was subsequently killed by the child after refusing to tell him about his father.[9]
