Frodo and Sam set off on a journey to take the one ring back to the fires of Mordor to finally destroy it. It was a quest that tested their physical, emotional, and mental strength to their limits. One hobbit would not have made it without the other, that is for sure. Unlike the elves and dwarves of Middle-Earth, the hobbits had no need to fight in wars, so there was never any training of the sort for these two. What our readers want to know is who would win in a physical fight, Frodo or Sam? Well, that really depends on the scenario, so we have come up with a few.
Before Frodo has the ring
At the beginning of The Fellowship of the Ring, we are introduced to The Shire. A magnificent little village where everyone knows everyone and life is just peachy. Frodo was a wealthy hobbit, although nobody really knows what he did for a living, it is assumed that his wealth probably came from inheritance. He owned land and had people who worked for him. Sam worked as a gardener in The Shire and even worked for Frodo, who was also his best friend. While Sam is obviously stronger than Frodo, Frodo would probably have the upper hand on wits. But, taking into consideration that Frodo has more than likely led a more sheltered life than Sam, we think that Sam would be a bit more street-savvy than Frodo. Sam and would use his brute strength to win in a bare-knuckle fight.
While Frodo has the ring
During the films, we see a change in both hobbits. The force of the ring makes Frodo insecure, scared, and starts to push his mind to an ugly place. On the other side, we see Sam’s loyalty to Frodo get stronger and stronger. He can see what the ring is doing to Frodo and would do whatever he could to help, even to his own detriment. With Frodo’s state of mind so warped and the ring giving him power when he slips it onto his finger, we think that Frodo would win the fight in this situation and Sam probably wouldn’t even fight back.
After the ring
Our two heroes return to The Shire as very different men. Their hearts are heavy from their six month journey and Frodo’s mind can never truly rest. He is plagued by the memories of the quest, by the all-seeing eye that was inside his psyche, and the blade of the Lord of the Nazgûl that nearly had him turning into a wraith. It’s safe to say that Frodo was never really stable again, while Sam went on to marry Rosie and have a happy family. In this scenario, we again believe that Sam would have the upper hand. While Frodo would probably become crazed and vicious in the situation due to his apparent PTSD and battle injuries, Sam would take him down without a problem.
So there we have it. It is our opinion that Sam would win in a physical fight every time unless Frodo has the One Ring to rule them all on his finger. Unless Frodo was trying to make a move on Rossie? Then maybe not even the ring could save him.
