Ambush in Rio de Janeiro

"Where is he?!" "Target acquired."

- Thaddeus Ross & Emil Blonsky

The Ambush in Rio de Janeiro was the first confrontation between Bruce Banner, transformed into the Hulk, and Emil Blonsky, a British soldier working for Banner's enemy, General Thaddeus Ross.

Background
Bruce Banner lived in Rio de Janeiro as a mechanic in a soda-bottling company. Martina, a co-worker, whose apartment was below his, had a crush on him. He had recently helped her when she was being sexually harassed by another co-worker.

General Thaddeus Ross assembled a team to capture Banner. General Joe Greller had gotten Russian-born British special Emil Blonsky to lead the team.

A drop of Banner's blood fell into a soda and was ingested by a customer in Milwaukee. Major Kathleen Sparr told Ross while he was in the Pentagon about a man in the hospital suffering from Gamma Radiation poisoning.

Escape
General Thaddeus Ross and his unit located Bruce Banner's house and burst in to shoot him with tranquilizer ammo, but Banner fled through the window and momentarily hid with Martina, one of his co-workers, at her house, in order to deceive the military. Emil Blonsky and the other soldiers pursued Banner through the streets and rooftops of Rocinha, while Banner tried to slow down his heart rate to prevent his transformation.



Battle at the Pingo Doce Factory
"Leave me alone."

- Hulk

While fleeing, Banner came across General Ross, realizing he was the man behind the chase, and also a man who almost got into a fight with him when Banner prevented him from harassing Martina earlier at the factory. This man also pursued Banner with his friends to the bottling factory in order to beat him. Blonsky located Banner in the factory and approached to witness the appearance of the Hulk, as the transformation was triggered by the men beating Banner. Hulk incapacitated the men and the soldiers except Blonsky, sparing him while Blonsky watched in astonishment. Banner escaped from the factory and fled into the jungle.

Aftermath
Bruce Banner awakened in Guatemala where a trucker gave him a ride to Mexico.

General Thaddeus Ross told Emil Blonsky the truth about the Hulk, the Super Soldier Serum, and other bits of classified information that intrigued Blonsky enough that he wanted injections to compete with Banner.