Talk:Top 11 Dumbest Lord of the Rings Moments

Dumbest Moment 11 - Letting Gandalf Die...is it really?
Dumbest Moment #11 - Letting Gandalf Die...is it really dumb?

Of the moments that made this list, I'd have to disagree with saying that "Just Letting Gandalf Die" was a dumb moment in the LotR Trilogy. Given the situation and the environment during that scene in Moria, saving Gandalf would have been virtually impossible.

I actually just saw the scene with Gandalf fallin into the depths of Moria with the Balrog, and a few clues point out that even if someone dared to choose the option of saving Gandalf, it'd likely lead to the death of one of the other Fellowship members right there in Moria. When the camera pans over the group as they cross the Bridge of Khazad-dum, we get an idea of just how wide the bridge is: not much wider than their shoulder's. When Gandalf destroys the bridge, he's pretty much at the center of the bridge's length (if not just past it).

Why am I factoring the width of the bridge so much? Because just shortly after the Balrog falls and Gandalf hangs on the bridge (eventually letting go), a large group of Orc archers arrive on the other side of the chasm, and running headlong to rescue Gandalf while avoiding arrows would leave very little room for misteps. The most qualified person at that point would've been Legolas due to his agility and keen senses, but he's already up the stairs to Moria's exit. Even if that wasn't the case and he was still down at the bridge and managed to reach Gandalf, how long would it have took for him to pull up Gandalf? Assuming Legolas has a decent amount of strength, the very least it would've taken him to pull up Gandalf would've been 4 to 5 seconds. How long would it take for an Orc with decent aim to make a shot at one of 2 stationary targets, probably just as much if not less than 4 seconds? Even if by some miracle Gandalf was pulled up, he and his rescuer would have their backs to the Orc Archers running down a straight path of the remaining half of the bridge. Unless Gandalf had the ability to make eyes appear on the back of their head, chances are they could've been hit while running away with the arrow impact leading to a possible stumble by whoever is at the back of the pack.

Even if by a miraculous stroke of luck Gandalf AND his rescuer did escape Moria, what would Gandalf have done for weapons since he dropped them in the chasm? And who is to say the Balrog would not have escaped Moria and pursued them? A bit of an unrelated, overanalyzing stretch on those last two bits, but something worth noting.

I'm probably not the first to think about this, and maybe a bit late to talk about it, but I thought I'd give it a try.

69.179.6.189 20:53, November 16, 2014 (UTC)GuardianRyona