William MacIntyre was robbed. Robbed of his destiny. At least, that’s how he always saw it. William moved from place to place growing up. He never really had the chance to make friends his own age. Instead, he primarily kept to himself when not in the company of his mother. His father, much to William’s disgust, was a professional criminal. Life pretty much remained that way until puberty hit young William. While this is a confusing and trying time for any young adult, William couldn’t be more sure of himself. This was because, along with all of the normal changes his body exhibited, he had also gained the superhuman ability to access the electromagnetic spectrum! Added to this power, he mastered: electromagnetism, energy absorption and projection, enhanced senses, the ability to fly, invulnerability, and enhanced strength! With this rather large set of powers (and an even larger chip on his shoulder), he renamed himself Triumph and began his new life as a superhero. 

At this time in history, other new heroes had come out of the woodwork but all operated individually until, during an alien invasion, the time had finally come for a superhero team to be born. Who would bring them together? Who would lead them? You guessed it! Triumph! Calling such heroes as: Flash, Green Lantern, Aquaman, Martian Manhunter, and the Black Canary, Triumph led a strike against the invaders that proved completely successful, assuring victory for the planet Earth!

The only problem? While attacking the aliens’ energy weapons directly, Triumph had used more electromagnetic energy than he had ever before manipulated before in one powerful burst. This attack, though repelling the enemy, had created a rift in time and space, tearing him from reality and wiping him from the minds of all who had ever met him! In essence, Triumph had never existed!

It wasn’t until the “Zero Hour” crisis, an event that shook the foundations of the very timestream, that Triumph was released back to normal time. But, as he soon discovered, things had changed much since his time in the sun. There were no statues in his honor. No history books speaking of his sacrifice. In fact, he wasn’t even remembered period! As far as these now-legendary heroes were concerned from his era, he was just some nameless rookie! To make things worse, the invaders had followed him home. Wasting no time, he sought the help of the heroes of this time. As can be expected, it took much to convince them of this “new hero’s” sincerity. After all, he sounded like a madman while spouting off about forming the Justice League or saving the planet. But determination won out and he was eventually aided in defeating the alien creatures for good this time. But where did this leave poor forgotten William MacIntyre? Well, he tried to continue where he had left off. He was asked to join Martian Manhunter’s Justice League Task Force (jumping at the opportunity) and even went on a few solo missions.

But after being kicked out of the League years later for insubordination, Triumph found himself soon after selling discarded items left over from “super battles” merely to pay his rent. Yes, life had certainly taken the superhero once named Triumph, chewed him up, and spat him out. That was until the day Lkz, a magical thunderbolt from the the 5th. dimension, answered his prayers. Or rather…..seemed to. The creature gave Triumph unimaginable power and claimed that if he were to attack the new Justice League with it, the League would appear weak enough for Triumph to step in as the hero he was always meant to be and take charge. Triumph, desperate at this point, agreed. But the creature had only been preying on Triumph’s insecurities. It meant to destroy the Earth! It took the combined forces of the Justice League and the Justice Society to defeat Lkz and Triumph.

In the end, Triumph was transformed into a block of ice by the mighty Spectre, rendering him harmless. But, as the Spectre went to smash the ice, he was stopped by the compassionate Angel, Zauriel, and instead moved to the League’s trophy room for safekeeping. This was not to be, however, as the headquarters was destroyed soon after, trophy room and Triumph included. It was a truly tragic end for a truly tragic hero. A superhero.