Lord of the Rings Viewers Finally Discover Why Gandalf Fell After Iconic Balrog Fight

Though The Two Towers and The Return of the King might get a lot of the plaudits for their huge battle scenes and epic story, The Fellowship of the Ring is probably the most underrated of the three.

It does an immensely good job telling us everything we need to know going into the story of The Lord of the Rings, before impressing upon us exactly why Frodo's quest is so important, and why the people who go with him are critical to the ring's overall fate.

Arguably the most important character across the three books/films is Gandalf, who serves as the guiding hand for the group, and then the forces of good once the Fellowship splits at Amon Hen.

It could all have been very different though, had Gandalf's "death" at the hands of the Balrog been a little more permanent. On that, many who have just seen the films questioned why Gandalf was unable to pull himself up after being caught by the Balrog's whip, including amongst Reddit users.

When one asked recently, several put forward theories, but the answer is actually a lot simpler than it may first appear. Gandalf's moment hanging on the brink was added to the films to create additional drama and tension, but in the book he slips straight off after being caught by Morgoth's most deadly allies.

The passage in the text reads as follows, "With a terrible cry the Balrog fell forward, and its shadow plunged down and vanished. But even as it fell it swung its whip, and the thongs lashed and curled about the wizard’s knees, dragging him to the brink. He staggered and fell, grasped vainly at the stone, and slid into the abyss. ‘Fly, you fools!’ he cried, and was gone."

So, whilst he absolutely does say "Fly, you fools" (and no he's not talking about the Eagles), there is no moment of high drama before his terrifyingly fall into the depths of Moria.