Clue is a 2017 comic mini-series created by IDW Publishing. It's based on the board game Clue and was written by Paul Allor and illustrated by Nelson Daniel.
When seven guests from different walks of life are invited to a New England mansion by the esteemed Mr. Boddy, the party takes a sharp turn when the host is found dead! The guests must overcome their mutual distrust (unlikely as it may seem) to find the culprit, all while dealing with a pair of suspicious detectives, a dwindling party, and a butler who definitely knows more than he lets on...
A follow-up series, Clue: Candlestick, was published in 2019, but it's not a sequel and works as a Continuity Reboot.
Tropers, on the webpage, with the tropes!
- Battle Butler: A flashback reveals that Upton led the Afghani raid that stole the surobi zinnia from Colonel Mustard's squad.
- Black Dude Dies First: Played with. The first person found dead is Mr. Boddy, the African-American host of the dinner. In actuality, he faked his death with the help of Upton, and the first person who is actually killed is Mrs. Peacock.
- Closed Circle: The bulk of the story takes place on the mansion's grounds. Once the detectives arrive, a storm washes out the bridge and no one can leave the estate.
- Curb Stomp Cushion: While Upton manages to kill editor Carlos Guzman and letterer Neil Uyetake fairly easily, artist Nelson Dániel manages to put up a surprisingly good fight before Upton manages to put him down.
- Eye Scream: Upton kills artist Nelson Daniel by jabbing him in the eye with an ink pen.
- Faking the Dead: Mr. Boddy (a.k.a. Dr. Black) fakes his death with the help of Upton to further his plans.
- Flashback: Frequently used to fill out backstory and inform the viewer of other events. Upton despises them.
- Fourth-Wall Observer: Upton speaks directly to the reader and the comic's creators on a regular basis.
- The Fourth Wall Will Not Protect You: At the end of the series, Upton, working under the fact that every mystery story has an obvious set of witnesses, takes Leave No Witnesses to its logical conclusion - by stepping out of the comic page and killing the editor, the letterer, the artist, the author, and even the reader...
- Hate Sink: Mr. Green covers most of the entries in The Jerk Index, and is quickly reviled by everyone who meets him. Even the narration hates him!Narration: Mister Green. Hedge fund manager turned pharmaceutical bro. Pond scum looks down on him.
- Healing Herb: The surobi zinnia plant can be used to provide a wide variety of "miracle drugs". A large part of Dr. Black's plan is making sure that he has sole access to it.
- Inside Man: One of the guests (Dr. Orchid) was in on Mr. Boddy/Dr. Black's plan from the start.
- It's All About Me: Miss Scarlett gets seriously starved for attention as the series rolls on, to the point of faking an attempt on her life to get some focus back onto her. Unfortunately, Mr. Green ends up distracting her and accidentaly causing her to go off the balcony and die for real.
- The Jeeves: Upton. Not only does he cater to every guest's request no matter how outrageously elaborate (in the middle of a murder, no less!), but he also leads a midnight operation in Afghanistan to steal the surobi zinnia and kill the creators of the comic all on the orders of his employer.
- Karma Houdini: In the end, Mr. Boddy/Dr. Black achieves everything they wanted. His business rival, Mr. Green, is poisoned, he has successfully recruited Professor Plum to his cause, while Senator White, Colonel Mustard, and Mrs. Peacock are killed because They Have Outlived Their Usefulness.
- Leave No Witnesses: Upton's standing orders are to leave no loose threads or witnesses. Unfortunately, he is able to take this order much farther than most would assume...
- Mutual Kill: Senator White and Colonel Mustard, in the greenhouse.
- No Celebrities Were Harmed: Miss Scarlet and Mr. Green are fairly unsubtle pastiches of Iggy Azalea and Martin Shkreli, respectively.
- No Fourth Wall: Upton regularly argues with IDW editor Carlos Guzman about the events of the story. This ends up biting Guzman in the ass, as he becomes Upton's first victim in the butler's sweep of witnesses.
- Only in It for the Money: In the end, Professor Plum elects to work with Dr. Black and Dr. Orchid - not for Orchid's promise of family, but the wealth and fame of working with the surobi zinnia. And also because he figures they'll kill him otherwise.
- Painting the Medium: Done in the final issue when Upton begins eliminating the people who worked on the comic book. First he kills editor Carlos Guzman, causing typographical errors in his text. Then he kills letterer Neil Uyetake, causing the Speech Bubbles to disappear. Then he kills artist Nelson Daniel, and the story continues with typewritten text...
- Rage Against the Author: Upton ends up murdering everyone who created the comic book.
- Rage Breaking Point: Upton loses it when the comic features a flashback within a flashback. This drives him to break the fourth wall completely and go after the IDW team responsible for the comic book.
- Red Shirt: Appropriately enough, Miss Scarlet fills this role. She's invited to the dinner only to provide entertainment to the others (Mr. Boddy is a big fan of hers). Everyone else is either working for Mr. Boddy or a target of his Xanatos Gambit.
- Shared Universe: While there are no in-story connections, it was confirmed
◊ that Clue takes place in the Hasbro Comic Universe alongside Transformers, G.I. Joe and several other titles. The Hasbro Tribune, an editorial page promoting the Hasbro Universe comics, was also printed at the end of the #1. - Shout-Out: Several to the 1985 live-action movie:
- At one point, Senator White shouts "Capitalism is never just a red herring!", an inversion of the movie's line about Communism.
- When Detective Amarillo leaves the mansion, she gloats about how she's going to "go home and sleep with my wife."
- This is followed by a police officer cheering her on with "Shake, rattle and roll!"note
