The New Warriors was originally compiled by writer/editor Tom DeFalco, consisting of the young superheroes Nova, Speedball, Namorita, Marvel Boy, and Firestar, all of whom were once featured in solo series or were supporting characters in more established series. To this mix DeFalco added Night Thrasher, an original character to serve as the team's founder and leader. The first volume was cancelled after 75 issues. The second volume relaunch lasted only 11 issues.

An attempt to again relaunch the book in 2002 with the characters of Speedball, Rage, Bolt, Turbo and the X-Men characters Skids and Jubilee as college students/super heroes fell through due to legal problems. Curiously enough, Jubilee would later join the group under the guise of Wondra after losing her own mutant powers after the depowering of 98% of the worlds mutant population by the Scarlet Witch during House of M.

A six issue mini-series of the title was released starting in June 2005, written by Zeb Wells and illustrated by Skottie Young, and featuring the team as the stars of a reality TV show. The line-up includes previous members Night Thrasher, Speedball, Nova, and Namorita, along with one new character, Microbe. A second new character, Debrii, joined in issue 4. Both characters debuted in the series, much like Night Thrasher shortly before volume 1 and Aegis in volume 2. This series leads into the events that caused the Marvel Civil War.