He first appears in chapter #361 "The Mysterious Monster, Finally Appears!!" (謎の怪物、ついに出現!! "Nazo no Kaibutsu, Tsui ni Shutsugen!!) "first published in "Weekly Shōnen Jump" on March 2, 1992. Cell is an evil artificial life form, created using cells from several of the main characters in the series, that travels back in time so he can become the perfect warrior. In order to do this, he must absorb Androids #17 and #18.