5 plot inconsistencies you probably didn’t notice in the Lord of the Rings trilogy

Nobody thinks of "plot holes" when The Lord of the Rings is mentioned. J.R.R. Tolkien delivers a meticulously chiseled world for fans to dive headfirst into: Middle-earth. When Frodo inherits a powerful but equally evil ring, he steps into his destiny. He must take the ring to its place of origin, Mount Doom, and destroy it before the Dark Lord Sauron uses it to conquer Middle-earth.

The lore, in both the books and in The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy, runs deep. This meant that the movies couldn't capture every single detail the books laid out, giving rise to some plot inconsistencies. Some can be explained away as a book-to-movie mishap, and others could just be how the plot was designed to go, but all of these are food for intense fandom discussions nonetheless.

So here are five plot inconsistencies that fans probably didn't notice in the LOTR movie trilogy.

Disclaimer: All opinions in this article belong solely to the writer.

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Sauron's folly, Gandalf's face-off against the Witch-King, and other things that didn't make sense in the Lord of the Rings movies

1) How did the Witch-King defeat Gandalf?

The Witch-King's armor (Image via YouTube/Max)

It is widely established in The Lord of the Rings franchise that Gandalf is one of the most powerful entities to traverse Middle-earth. He is a Maiar--an important spirit from Valinor--in a human body, and his resume is stacked with an undefeated streak. He even fought off all nine of the Ringwraiths at once on Weathertop. So it didn't make sense that the Witch-King bested him in a single showdown.

Two things might explain this away: One, in the book, the battle is more cerebral. The Witch-King brandishes his weaponry and taunts Gandalf, thinking he has the wizard cornered, but before he can do much, the Horn of Rohirrim is sounded, and he flees. In the movie, it looked more like a way to raise the stakes by showing a minor antagonist defeating Gandalf and making the audience fear the Minas Tirith.

Two, the prophecy surrounding the Witch-King claims that he cannot be defeated in the hands of men. While Gandalf is not technically a human male, it might explain away the director Peter Jackson's decision to have an action-packed scene replace the original text.

2) The Battle of the Black Gate didn't quite add up in The Lord of the Rings movies

Aragorn tricks Sauron (Image via YouTube/Max)

In The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King, Aragorn and his allies march to the Black Gate and distract Sauron as Frodo, Sam, and Gollum journey to Mount Doom in an attempt to destroy the Ring. Sauron falls for the trap, thinking Aragorn had the ring and would use it against him. However, with all the details the movies added away from the books, this assumption does not make sense.

Based on the Osiligarth storyline in the movies, where Faramir takes Frodo, Sam, and Gollum, the Ringwraiths appear to see Frodo with the ring last. That knowledge alone should've alerted Sauron that Aragorn's presence is just a distraction. However, this can be explained away as a change in the LOTR movies.

The trip to Osgiliath did not happen in the books, so the Ringwraiths did not know who had the Ring. Moreover, Sauron never actually saw the ring on anyone at any point, and he cannot figure out who has the ring on, only that someone does. So this addition in the movies ends up being an inconvenient plot hole.

3) Gandalf not using his powers to the fullest

Gandalf appeared more vulnerable in the movies (Image via YouTube/Warner Bros. Entertainment)

The Lord of the Rings franchise showed Gandalf as a more vulnerable entity compared to the books. Even though he is one of the--if not the most--powerful beings in both versions, his human side gets more time in the spotlight. While he can be killed either way, the books always showed him as a more powerful, strategic, and stoic entity who seemed untouchable.

In the movies, he is defeated by the Witch-King, saved by Pippin, and shown swinging his staff around in an attempt to defeat the Orcs. While fans appreciate seeing this other side of him, it does not fully compute, given everything that has been established about the wizard. He says so himself; he is the greatest power in Middle-earth, but that doesn't translate in the movies entirely.

4) Gollum's vs Bilbo's physical reaction to the ring is different in the movies

Gollum and the ring (Image via Prime Video)

The idea behind the Ring is that it prolongs the life of the wearer. So when the ring was first with Gollum and later lost and found by Bilbo, fans see its effects on his appearance. However, just a few scenes after Bilbo gives the ring to Frodo, he starts looking older almost immediately, and things worsen by the end of The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King.

Compared to Gollum, who appears more or less the same after losing the ring for decades together, this change left fans confused. However, this can once again be explained away as a novel-to-movie change. Twenty years pass after Bilbo leaves the Ring with Frodo, and skipping that small but crucial fact makes it look as though the events happen in the span of a few weeks.

Moreover, the effects of the ring itself are different depending on how long the wearer has had it. Because Gollum had it longer, its effects on him were more long-term in The Lord of the Rings.

5) Sauron not guarding Mount Doom

Sam and Frodo had no problem entering Mount Doom (Image via Prime Video)

One of the most heavily debated questions in The Lord of the Rings trilogy is how Sam and Frodo seemingly sauntered into Mount Doom, the place of the One Ring's origin and the only place it could be destroyed. Sauron knows it is the only place it could be destroyed, so not leaving an orc or two there to defend made things look a little too easy.

There are several explanations why it was left unguarded by an evil and calculating villain like Sauron. For starters, the journey to Mount Doom is filled with lethal obstacles: The huge mountains, the gates guarded by Orcs and Nazgûl, and crossing through a literal desert filled with Orcs to get there. It seems pretty impossible that anyone would make it.

However, the more layered reason comes from fans knowing Sauron's psyche. His arrogance, his complete lack of belief that someone would willingly destroy the Ring, and his blind faith in his abilities to corrupt the Ringbearer, ultimately became his folly. But at least a bit of protection wouldn't have hurt.

Watch The Lord of the Rings movie trilogy on Amazon Prime Video or HBO Max.

Edited by Tiasha