Lord Of The Rings fans finally discover why Gandalf chose Bilbo, specifically

The Lord of the Rings fans are only just figuring out why exactly Gandalf chose Bilbo for his adventure during the events of The Hobbit, even though Bilbo himself seemed so unwilling to take part.

Over on the r/lotr subreddit, one fan asked if it was “ever explicitly stated why Gandalf chose Bilbo to partake in the quest to retake the Lonely Mountain?”

“Gandalf needed a hobbit because, unlike dwarves elves or men, Smaug had never eaten one and wouldn’t recognize the scent,” commented user 4mer4mer.

“Of all the hobbits, Bilbo was a Took who had a family history of being adventurous. He was also a rich bachelor who could afford to be away from home for a year.”

“He also knew of Bilbos excursions out in the woods and would disappear for long periods of time and sensed he was bored of hobbit life,” replied user mearbearz.

“Once he learned of that he pretty much concluded that this was his guy.”

As mentioned several times in The Hobbit, Bilbo’s longing for adventure stems from his mother, Belladonna Took.

The Tooks are well known for their storied adventures in Middle-Earth, and Bilbo’s mother was no different - although it seems that she longed for further excitement after marrying Bilbo’s father, Bungo Baggins, which eventually rubbed off on him.

It seems Bilbo’s lineage was somewhat at odds, based on Bilbo’s behaviour. Part of him wanted to settle down and live a quiet life, much like his Baggins predecessors, whereas the other part of him wanted to adventure, much like his Took predecessors.

Gandalf seemed to understand this following his many visits to The Shire, during which he’d spy Bilbo sneaking off as a child.

While his need for a Hobbit was a necessity of sorts, it seems that he chose Bilbo specifically due to his desire for adventure; something that Bilbo himself didn’t understand as well as Gandalf did.