Warning! Spoilers for Maestro: War and Pax #5 below!
The Hulk's forgotten MCU villain is making his long-awaited return to Marvel comics as Emil Blonsky aka the Abomination emerges to battle his long-time nemesis. Specifically his return sees him fighting Future Imperfect version of the Hulk known as Maestro. Although other versions of the Abomination have roamed and fought the Green Goliath, Blonsky's return brings to mind his promising yet oddly forgotten appearance in the MCU and how this other green Gamma monstrosity may be making a comeback.
Created by Stan Lee and Gil Kane for Tales to Astonish #90 (1967), Emil was a foreign spy who infiltrated the same U.S. Air Force base where Bruce Banner conducted his experiments in Gamma radiation. When Banner failed to activate a machine that would bombard him with enough Gamma to kill him and thus end the Hulk's threat to the world, Blonsky willingly took that opportunity and bombarded himself with a more intense and concentrated dose of Gamma than what Banner received. Although his genetics saved him from dying, the Gamma radiation caused him to mutate into a green skinned Hulk-like monster who not only was stronger than the Hulk but maintained his intelligence despite being unable to transform back to his human form. Nicknamed The Abomination by Betty Ross, Blonsky became a persistent opponent of the Hulk, unafraid to work with other villains or handle things in his own way like the murder of Betty Banner, which he ended up paying for years later. General Thaddeus "Thunderbolt" Ross in his Red Hulk form tracked the Abomination down, beat and then killed him for his role in that murder.
Despite a brief resurrection or two, Emil Blonsky has remained dead since his last appearance in Hulk Vol. 3 #4 in 2014, while others have become variations of the Abomination who were completely unique or connected to Blonsky in some way. In Maestro: War and Pax #5 by Peter David, Javier Pina and Wilton Santos, Maestro follows up his defeat of the Parthenon and AIM with the thorough beating of his collaborator Doctor Doom so he can continue his conquest of the post-apocalyptic Earth unchallenged. From the rubble of their destroyed headquarters, another AIM prisoner is now free, as the original Abomination has returned to challenge his nemesis for dominance once again.
Although he died in 2014, the Abomination lived on as Rick Jones became the new Abomination or "A-Bomb" for a time and Gamma-radiated tissue was used to help create the horrifying Abomination-like armor that General Fortean uses in the Immortal Hulk. Blonsky's return here brings to mind his similar yet uniquely terrifying role as the villain in 2008's The Incredible Hulk, where he was portrayed by actor Tim Roth. Although he was defeated and likely imprisoned following his battle with the Hulk in Harlem, the Abomination and other notable Hulk villain Samuel Sterns aka The Leader were seemingly forgotten after Bruce Banner was recast from Edward Norton to Mark Ruffalo for 2012's Avengers. The Abomination is a perfect adversary to the Hulk, a similar entity that is supposedly both stronger and smarter, and it's a little strange that the MCU's S.H.I.E.L.D. didn't think to negotiate with their prisoner to help them during all those times they suffered Hulk problems.
In the past, the Abomination has considered himself and the Hulk alike, failing to comprehend that they are both regarded as rampaging inhuman monsters. His return puts him in the world where the Hulk is the world's worst villain. He unites with Namor the Submariner in the hopes of stopping Maestro and thus saving the world, making Blonsky the hero he always believed himself to be. With his upcoming role in the Maestro: World War M storyline and Tim Roth's confirmed return in the upcoming She-Hulk series, it would appear the Abomination is back and Marvel wants to make sure you know his name.