Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense

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The Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense


B.P.R.D. by Guy Davis
Publisher Dark Horse Comics
First appearance Hellboy: Seed of Destruction (1993)
Created by Mike Mignola
Base(s) of operations Research facility in Colorado
Roster
Johann Kraus, Liz Sherman, Abe Sapien, Kate Corrigan, Captain Ben Daimio, Director Tom Manning, Professor Trevor Bruttenholm, Hellboy, Mr. Bud Waller, Mr. Sidney Leach, Mr. Clark, Roger the Homunculus, Mr. Izzy Kemper, Mr. Garrett Omatta, Mr. Jim, Mr. Wilson, The Finn, Dr. Arnold Platt, Dr. Cobb, Dr. Roddel, Dr. Hoffman, Mr. Lloyd

The Bureau for Paranormal Research and Defense (the B.P.R.D. or BPRD) is a fictional organization in the work of Mike Mignola, charged with protecting America and the world from the occult, paranormal and supernatural. It maintains the services of several supernatural persons, including Hellboy. The BPRD originally appeared in the Hellboy comics but has also been featured in many stories under the BPRD title.

Contents

[edit] The Bureau's history

The BPRD was founded in late 1944 by Professor Trevor Bruttenholm to combat various occult threats uncovered in operations against Nazi Germany. It initially had strong links to the USAAF and was based at a military airbase in New Mexico, but later relocated to a custom built facility in Fairfield, Connecticut. It maintains strong links to various branches of the United States Armed Forces to this day. It is a private organization that receives funding from several major governments (mostly the United States and United Kingdom, although other countries like Canada, Japan, France, and Italy have been mentioned).

Professor Bruttenholm served as director until the late 1950s when he stepped down to return to field work. The current Director is Dr. Thomas Manning. Since the 1970's, additional paranormal agents have joined the ranks, such as Liz Sherman, Johann Kraus, and Ben Daimio. This has become necessary to maintain the high profile of the Bureau, especially in light of the departure of their flagship agent, Hellboy, in 2001.

The BPRD is a well known and respected organization that has excellent relations with most international governments and United States Government Agencies, with the exceptions of China and the CIA. The Bureau was the United States' only defense against an onslaught of frog creatures (originally featured in Seed of Destruction). Though the 'frogs' originally began operating on the East Coast, they spread west on both sides of the US-Canadian border. To cut costs, the Bureau moved from its traditional headquarters in Connecticut to an abandoned research facility in Colorado. This facility was last used to house Nazi scientists who defected to America after World War II. As such, the facility contains vast amounts of secret files that the BPRD has yet to explore.

The frog monster invasion reached its peak during the events of The Black Flame. A Nazi madman called the Black Flame insinuated himself as the leader of the frogs, and together they raised Katha-Hem (one of the Ogdru Hem, the 369 spawn of the Ogdru Jahad) from the ground. The mountainous beast ran rampant across the American heartland until Liz Sherman used an ancient artifact to amplify her pyrokinetic powers a thousand-fold. After she burned Katha-Hem alive, the frog monsters dragged the Black Flame into a vast pit and the invasion came to an end.

[edit] Appearances in other media

The BPRD, as portrayed in the 2004 film Hellboy, differs from the agency in the comics in several ways. In the movie it is a secret United States Government Agency strongly affiliated with the FBI—several personnel are federal agents including Manning and new character Special Agent John Myers. The Director is still Professor Bruttenholm, who refers to the bureau as "the ones who bump back", in reference to "things that go bump in the night". The BPRD uses the motto "In Absentia Luci, Tenebrae Vincunt", Latin for "In the Absence of Light, Darkness Prevails".

It is hinted that the base may be related to the legendary military base Area 51: the number "51" appears on the walls.

B.P.R.D. emblem
B.P.R.D. emblem

[edit] Personnel

[edit] 'Enhanced talents' agents

[edit] Human agents

  • Dr. Tom Manning, director
  • Dr. Kate Corrigan, liaison to enhanced talents agents
  • Professor Trevor Bruttenholm, former director (deceased)
  • Dr. O'Donnell, occult specialist
  • Mr. Sidney Leach, safecracker (possibly retired)
  • Mr. Bud Waller, field agent (deceased)
  • Mr. Clark, field agent (deceased)
  • FBI Special Agent John Myers, Hellboy liaison (movie version only)
  • Mr. Garrett Omatta, psychic
  • Mr. Wilson, pilot (turned into a frogman, presumed deceased)
  • Mr. Jim, techie
  • Mr. Izzy Kemper, cult expert and linguist, possibly mind reader
  • Dr. Arnold Platt, scientist (deceased)
  • Possibly The Finn, a friend of Hellboy's
  • Dr. Roddel, scientist
  • Dr. Cobb, scientist
  • Dr. Hoffman, scientist or psychic
  • Mr. Lloyd, mechanic

[edit] The miniseries & one-shots

  • B.P.R.D.: Hollow Earth
  • B.P.R.D.: The Soul of Venice
  • B.P.R.D.: Dark Waters
  • B.P.R.D.: Night Train
  • B.P.R.D.: There's Something Under My Bed
  • B.P.R.D.: A Plague of Frogs
  • B.P.R.D.: The Dead
  • B.P.R.D.: The Black Flame
  • B.P.R.D.: The Universal Machine
  • B.P.R.D.: Garden of Souls

[edit] References

[edit] Graphic Novels

[edit] Others

  • Hellboy (motion picture, 2004)
  • Hellboy 2 (motion picture, upcoming)
  • Hellboy Sourcebook and Role Playing Game
  • The B.P.R.D. Declassified, TV special that aired on the FX Network in 2004

[edit] See also

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