Poor, overlooked, (wingless) Balrogs

Rauþúlfr

New Member
I've skimmed through the discussion threads and didn't see anything mentioning balrogs. (I came across Exploring LOTR just as Frodo was awakening in Rivendell and have managed to catch back up to episode 100, so hopefully this has not been touched upon in episodes I have not caught up with.) As a whole, discussing balrogs is premature given the chapters covered to date, but there was one point under discussion in which the poor, wingless critter in Moria was overlooked. It was noted that Sauron had laid siege to Rivendell in the past, and the forces available to him were tallied should he lay siege to Rivendell again if the Ring were to remain there. The balrog wasn't mentioned. The got me thinking. Why wouldn't Sauron call upon the Balrog for such a siege? After all they were both captains of Morgoth, so undoubtedly they knew each other from the old days.

Doubtless we'll discuss the nature of balrogs at greater length once the fellowship reaches Moria, but it remains worth considering why would Sauron not call upon his old friend from work if he were to muster forces against Rivendell. After all, if many of those with the most power to resist Sauron dwell in Rivendell, would it not make sense to call upon the greatest of his possible allies? I can think of only one reason why not call on the balrog; perhaps the balrog could not be trusted with the One Ring?

It is fair to presume that the Witch King possessed the power to use the One ring, but was unable to claim it because of his complete submission to Sauron. The balrog would not be under such a restriction. Perhaps he would represent more of a potential challenger to Sauron rather than a potential ally? If that were the case, the last thing Sauron would want to do would be to call forth an army to send against Rivendell to claim his long-forgotten Ring. Why else would he not, hypothetically, call up this other former minion of Morgoth? Why indeed!
 
I think the simplest (and most likely correct) answer is that Sauron doesn't know the Balrog is there.

The next most likely answer is that the Balrog would not answer to Sauron - it is a free agent. And Sauron knows this, so he wouldn't risk the almost certain humiliation of being turned down.

The "reading between the lines" answer, and one we are expanding upon in the Silm Film project, is that right from day one Sauron and the Balrogs did not get along. I think there is a reason that Sauron names his chief lieutenant, who is utterly and completely dominated by his master, after Gothmog, the late lamented chief of the Balrogs.

(It's related to a fictional character/villain created by a local-to-me author, where the character named his dog Guy Lafleur - not because he loved the Montreal Canadiens ice hockey team and wanted to honour their greatest player, but because he hated that team and was a bad dog owner/person and would kick his dog and yell "F you Guy Lafleur!").
 
It's quite true that we have no information indicating that Sauron knows the balrog is there. And I can certainly agree that it wouldn't answer Sauron's call if he knew of its presence, still, in the hypothetical instance that he was aware of it, it might consider an alliance and take advantage of the opportunity to head an army and strike a blow against some of the surviving foes of Morgoth. (Unless, of course, he's just chillin' and waiting for his master's return.)
 
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A couple slivers of evidence.

Per Appendix B: We're told that, in 2480, "Sauron begins to people Moria with his creatures."

And Gandalf tells us that "The Dwarves tell no tale; but even as mithril was the foundation of their wealth, so also it was their destruction: they delved too greedily and too deep, and disturbed that from which they fled, Durin's Bane. Of what they brought to light the Orcs have gathered nearly all, and given it in tribute to Sauron, who covets it."

We can't say for certain whether the orcs encountered the Balrog or whether they'd recognize it if they did; but they certainly had time and access to passages deep enough to encounter it. It seems likely to me that, given even a cursory description and no name (combined with the rumor Gandalf reports), Sauron would recognize it for what it is. We could speculate on whether the orcs' behavior when the Balrog arrives suggests ignorance or knowledge of its nature, whether they behave as allies or simply possessors of a common foe, but that would require (if you'll forgive me) delving too deep into text we haven't encountered yet. (Which I'm somewhat guilty of already.)
 
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