Boden "Boddy" Black Jr., formerly Dr. Black in the UK and Mr. Boddy in the US, is the owner of Tudor Mansion (originally Tudor Close, Tudor Manor, and Tudor Hall), who takes the stock character of a generic victim.
Background[]
In Cluedo lore, he is the host who gets murdered, which inspires the premise to discover who murdered him, with which weapon, and where the crime scene took place in his mansion.
Original[]
In Cluedo Original, Dr. Black was listed in the original patent filing as one of the 10 characters created for the game, in which one character was randomly drawn from the suspect cards to serve as the new victim prior to the start of each game. Therefore, the victim was never intended to be the same character each game, nor were the player assignments. However, prior to the publication of the first edition, Dr. Black was relegated to the role of permanent victim in the UK, and Mr. Boddy in North America.
Standard[]
In all regular versions of Cluedo/Clue, Boddy Black is stated to have been the victim after sending an invitation to six suspects. In earlier versions, his body is found at the bottom of the cellar stairs by Miss Scarlett so she rolls first, but to be fair, there are other ways to determine who rolls first in later versions. Aside from being murdered, his role in the standard games ends here. Dr. Black makes his first appearance in a board game on the box cover of the 1996 Cluedo edition, as a photograph in a newspaper. He appears as an older, somber man with unkempt hair. He has a PhD in physics.
Cluedo Mobile 2016[]
Similarly in Cluedo Mobile 2016, Dr. Black is killed after sending an invitation to six suspects. A lucky spin determines who goes first at the beginning. Whenever a player makes a suggestion or an accusation, Dr. Black is always moved to the according room. It can be inferred that Dr. Black is murdered and found in the room but not under the accusation stairs.
Master Detective[]
In Clue Master Detective, though once again unseen, Boddy's character is slightly more fleshed out through the descriptions on the playing cards. From most of the info gathered, Mr. Boddy collects memoirs of famous spies as well as art, had an ex-secretary by the name of Madame Rose and supposedly has painted an exotic beauty several times in his Studio.
2002 US[]
Wealthy anthropologist, Mr. John Boddy, died just short of his 30th birthday. He had often been nicknamed Dr. Black in reference to his more well-known uncle, Sir Hugh Black.
Cluedo/Clue Mysteries[]
Dr. Black makes only his second appearance in this game, his first as Mr. Boddy. He is drawn as a young, cheerful man wearing a trench-coat and glancing at his pocket-watch. For the first time, he is a player as well as a victim of a crime, though no one is murdered in this game.
Discover the Secrets[]
In Clue Discover the Secrets, Dr. Black is completely replaced with an unnamed and unseen millionaire mogul
Clue the Card Game Mystery at Sea[]
In this spinoff of the board games on a yacht, Mr. Boddy appears for the second time only, in an unfinished portrait as a distinguished older gentleman, wearing a Van dyke beard and a monocle. He is not, however, relegated to the role of the obligatory corpse, but may instead, with the luck of the draw, play as a suspect.
2023 UK/US[]
In this version of the board game, his name has been changed to Boden "Boddy" Black, Jr., combining the character's British and American names. Boddy Black had grown up spoiled, making himself rich not only from the money he had inherited from his late father, Boden Black, Sr., but also from blackmailing Miss Scarlett, Colonel Mustard, Chef White, Mayor Green, Solicitor Peacock, and Professor Plum. In the 2023 online round of Cluedo, Boddy Black invites his victims to a dinner party at Tudor Mansion. The event has been held to celebrate Boddy Black's plans to open a new hotel for the rich and famous, a controversial project opposed by the residents of Hue County. In act of betrayal, Black cuts off the hotel co-owners (Miss Scarlett, Colonel Mustard, Chef White, Mayor Green, Solicitor Peacock, and Professor Plum), whom he had been blackmailing to obtain money for the hotel's construction. After the dinner, Boddy Black gets physically attacked by Solicitor Peacock in her failed attempt at revenge but is ultimately killed by Chef White, who is revealed to be his paternal half-sister who wants to inherit all their father's money.
| Suspect Navigation |
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| Original: Reverend Green | Colonel Mustard | Professor Plum | Mrs. Peacock | Miss Scarlett | Mrs. White Master Detective additions: Monsieur Brunette | Sgt. Gray | Miss Peach | Madame Rose Newer: Inspector Grey | Prince Azure | Dr. Orchid | Agent Gray | Analyst Hyacinth | Dean Celadon | Director Rosewood Victim: Dr. Black/Mr Body |