Publication history
Samuel Guthrie debuted as a member of the New Mutants in Marvel Graphic Novel #4 (September 1982), created by Chris Claremont and artist Bob McLeod. McLeod later commented, "I always liked Cannonball the best [of the New Mutants]. I tried to give all the mutants distinct body types and characteristics, and with his big ears and lanky frame, he was just the most fun to draw."
After a guest appearance in The Uncanny X-Men # 167, the character appeared regularly in the title The New Mutants from its first issue to its hundredth issue (1983–1991), and continued to appear in its replacement title X-Force (1991). In X-Force # 44 (1995), Cannonball leaves X-Force to join the X-Men, appearing regularly in X-Men #48–89 and The Uncanny X-Men #323–355 (1995–1998). He rejoins his friends in X-Force while on an extended road trip in X-Force #86 (1998), and stays with the team through issue # 117 (2001), after which the title changes drastically, taken over by the team later to be known as X-Statix.
Cannonball next appears as a member of the X-Corporation in New X-Men #128, 130, 131 and 140 (2002–2003), and then rejoins the X-Men in a splinter team led by Storm in X-Treme X-Men #24–46 (2003–2004). After the cancellation of X-Treme X-Men, Cannonball appears regularly with the X-Men in the mid to late 2000s, including The Uncanny X-Men #444–447 (2004) and #466–474 (2006), X-Men #188–204 (2006–2007), Young X-Men #1–6 (2008) and Secret Invasion: X-Men #1–4 (2009). He and Sunspot also appear in Astonishing Tales #1–6 (2009).
In 2009, New Mutants was relaunched in its third volume, penned by Zeb Wells, though in this incarnation they were a strike team of X-Men with a defined roster, including Mirage, Karma, Sunspot, Magma, Magik, Cypher, and Warlock. Cannonball appears as a regular from issue #1 through #25 (2009–2011). The New Mutants were a major fixture in the Second Coming event, in which Cannonball and his team appear in The Uncanny X-Men #523–524, X-Force #36 and X-Men: Legacy #234–235 (2010).
Cannonball would be featured during Second Coming in the X-Men: Hellbound miniseries #1–3 (2010), leading the team of Pixie, Gambit, Anole, Dazzler, Trance and Northstar to Limbo to rescue Magik.
In the Age of X event, Cannonball suffered mental trauma as the field leader of a bastion under constant siege, causing him to leave the New Mutants in X-Regenesis #1 (2011) and New Mutants #25 vol. 3 (2011). He would leave the X-Men's base on Utopia to join Wolverine's faction at the Jean Grey School for Higher Learning in New York, joining Rogue's team in X-Men: Legacy #260.1-#267 (2012).
Cannonball and Sunspot were asked by Captain America to join the Avengers, bridging the gap between humans and mutants in the aftermath of the Avengers vs. X-Men event. He appears in Avengers vol. 5 #1–23 (2013) and #38–44 (2015), Avengers World #1–18 (2014–2015), U.S. Avengers #1–12 (2017), and Avengers #675–690 (2018) during the No Surrender event.
He later rejoined the X-Men in The Uncanny X-Men vol. 5 #1 (2018) and remains in regular publication in that title.
Cannonball appeared in the New Mutants: War Children one-shot (2019).