There has been some discussion about Gandalf's use of the phrase '
Thrice shall pay for all, if you are willing' to Gwaihir at the Battle of the Black Gate, in terms of the latter taking him and then going with other eagles to rescue Frodo and Sam at his request. The other two times were, I believe, when Gwaihir personally rescued Gandalf, when his life was at serious risk.
In terms of the previous two events, the first would be when the eagles rescued Bilbo, Gandalf and the dwarves, bringing them to their eyrie,
and then taking them some distance to Beorn, to get ahead of the goblins and wargs. It's clearly stated that Gwaihir was the eagle who personally rescued Gandalf, when the latter was about to attack the goblins and wolves, but who would have died as a result. The second would be when Gwaihir rescued Gandalf from Celebdil, after the Battle of the Peak with the Balrog, when he had died and come back from the dead, but was obviously in a bad way. One could argue that Gandalf's life was not immediately at risk when he was rescued from Orthanc, although his ultimate fate would have been unpleasant, particularly if he had been handed over to Sauron. Also, the interventions of the eagles in the Battle of Five Armies and the Battle of the Black Gate were not intended to save Gandalf personally, or a small group of which he was a member.
What do people think?
