History Awesome / TheHobbitAnUnexpectedJourney

* A meta-example is just how much more of the original dialogue from the book got into the film compared to the ''LOTR'' trilogy. Bilbo starting his book with "In a hole in the ground, there lived a Hobbit", closely followed by Bilbo and Gandalf's "Good morning" exchange, were a gratifying EstablishingCharacterMoment for the film itself for long-term fans.

* Gandalf coming to the rescue of Bilbo and the dwarves by splitting a boulder in two, revealing sunlight, and [[TakenForGranite causing the trolls to turn to stone]].

* The "Blunt the Knives" sequence. The dwarves reveal that they can match Legolas in terms of dexterity, tossing around plates and fragile china one dwarf to another (Balin not even paying much attention as he does so) and it all ends up in a neat set of piles at the end.

** And even before that, when Bilbo shows some GuileHero qualities and tries to put the trolls off eating the dwarves by insisting they have parasites. Of course, that nearly gets ''him'' eaten instead, but it was still pretty quick thinking.
** Really, seeing the dwarves furiously charge out of the undergrowth to rescue Bilbo (which culminates in an epic fight), when compared to the original book where they all got caught with relative ease.
** When the trolls discover and threaten Bilbo, Kíli leaps out of the bushes, attacks one of the trolls, and demand the trolls drop Bilbo. He's clearly willing to fight all three to rescue Bilbo, even before the rest of the company arrives to back him up. He and Fíli promised they'd be right behind him, and they kept that promise.

** Dori gets a good shot at one of the troll's [[GroinAttack unmentionables]] with his bolas. And then Dwalin knocks its teeth out with his war-hammer.
** The dwarves preferred method of freeing comrades who were grabbed by trolls? Launching themselves bodily into the air, and then slicing the troll's arms so they'll drop'em.

** On top of that after Thrór's death, the dwarf army begins to rout, but once he cuts off Azog's arm, Thorin stands up and rallies his army, shouting a Dwarvish BattleCry and leading them to victory.

** For the orcs, Azog is seen knocking two dwarves into the air with one swing.
* Radagast having the balls to single-handedly infiltrate Dol Guldur, knowing ''exactly'' what it is and who dwells there. He also takes the Witch-King of Angmar in a duel.

* And let's not forget the chase between the wargs and his rabbits. He manages to outrun the wargs.
--->'''Gandalf:''' These are Gundabad wargs. They will outrun you!\\
'''Radagast:''' [[BadassBoast These are Rhosgobel rabbits! I'd like to see them]] ''[[BadassBoast try]]''!

* One for the elves when they ride out to eliminate the orc scouting party chasing the dwarves. They completely slaughter the orcs with almost no effort.
* Gandalf outsmarting Saruman by predicting he'd try to stop the dwarves from reclaiming Erebor and sending the dwarves away from Rivendell ahead of time. Not even Elrond and Galadriel caught onto his plan until it was too late.

* Bilbo's brief sword fight with a goblin before falling down the chasm. His first taste of one-on-one combat, and he holds his own!

* The entire escape from the goblin caves is filled with Crowning Moments every five seconds: they were quite literally being swarmed at every conceivable angle and opportunity, yet none of them suffered anything more than a few scratches - they weren't even out of breath!
** Gandalf. This is the first time he uses Glamdring, and how well does he wield it? He slices through a goblin. The goblin panics silently, trying to process both the fact that he knows a sword went through him, and that he doesn't have a mark on him. Gandalf gently taps the confused goblin on the head, and the head tumbles off, neatly severed at the neck.

** Kíli BLOCKING ARROWS WITH HIS SWORD! And then with a [[ImprobableWeaponUser LADDER]]! And then using the ladder to push goblins off a chasm! And then using the ladder to cross the chasm!
** Bombur running along, and when he's dog-piled by a swarm of smaller goblins, he just keeps running!
** Balin, the oldest dwarf in company, who wears no armour but a simple red robe more suited for a wizard then a warrior, flourishes his scimitar and with one hand takes out the five or six goblins that were surrounding him.
** Dwalin, when encountering a particularly large group of goblins, sheathes his axe and picks up a big plank of wood and starts swatting the goblins off the edge as he charges into them.
** Óin, one of the eldest and most infirm of the Company, takes out a whole crowd of goblins just by swinging his staff around his head and building up a bit of momentum.
** Speaking of those scenes, seeing the special effects with the Great Goblin and the trolls talking were ''amazing''. In the earlier films, there seemed no possible way that they could sound like normal people, only like trolls and orcs. Seeing them talk like regular humans made them really scary and cool at the same time.
* Bilbo's short speech to the company manages to perfectly encapsulate the philosophy a [[InnocentBystander hobbit]] [[TheHero hero]] would have. It's not a big declaration or a promise to eradicate some evil or enemy, there are just people who don't even have the simple comforts of home and he would like to fix that.

* Thorin charging Azog across a burning tree after Azog taunts Thorin that he encountered Thráin (Thorin's father), and that Thráin "stank of fear".
** From that same scene, Bilbo flinging himself at Azog's mook in an attempt to save Thorin's life - and it WORKS, as he managed to stab the orc not once but ''three times''. Then immediately afterward, he puts himself between Thorin and the rest of Azog's company; he's clearly shaking a little, scared and knowing that he can't win alone. And he still stands his ground to protect his friend, much like Eowyn would do many years later against the Witch-King.
*** His example inspires most of the other dwarves to follow him into battle, instead of simply hanging on for dear life. They are on foot, up against several dozen orcs atop wargs, yet the element of surprise and their own fierceness allows them to put up a good fight, and certainly holds the line long enough for the eagles to arrive.

* The entire scene where the eagles rescue the company. Shows you exactly why the great eagles are such powerful allies, and why Tolkien referred to them as a "dangerous device" for his narrative.
** The fact that they were shown to be intelligent, one using the power of its wings to roast several wargs in an inferno, and another ''physically toppling a tree'' to squash several of them instead of just attacking a single orc. It's awesome for those of us who haven't read the books and didn't know the eagles were an actual race instead of a summon spell.
** The cinematography for the eagle scenes ''alone'' is a gorgeous sort of awesome.

* A meta-example is just how much more of the original dialogue from the book got into the film compared to the ''LOTR'' trilogy. Bilbo starting his book with "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit", closely followed by Bilbo and Gandalf's "Good morning" exchange, were a gratifying EstablishingCharacterMoment for the film itself for long-term fans.

** Three trolls were all it took in ''Return of The King'' to scatter the Gondorian knights guarding the gates of Minas Tirith (though those were [[NewAndImproved trained, armoured, immune-to-sunlight Olog-Hai]]). This RagtagBandOfMisfits would have made the fight a KerbStompBattle if Bilbo hadn't gotten caught.

** Three trolls were all it took in ''Return of The King'' to scatter the Gondorian knights guarding the gates of Minas Tirith (though those were [[NewAndImproved trained, armored, immune-to-sunlight Olog-Hai]]). This RagtagBandOfMisfits would have made the fight a CurbStompBattle if Bilbo hadn't gotten caught.

** Gollum retracting the ButtMonkey status many labeled him with in ''LOTR'' and returning to his NightmareFuel roots.

** Balin, the oldest dwarf in company, who wears no armor but a simple red robe more suited for a wizard then a warrior, flourishes his scimitar and with one hand takes out the five or six goblins that were surrounding him.

** From that same scene, Bilbo flinging himself at Azog's mook in an attempt to save Thorin's life - and it WORKS! Plus, when he defended himself, he stabbed the orc not once but ''three times''.
*** And his example inspires most of the other dwarves to follow him into battle, instead of simply hanging on for dear life. They are on foot, up against orcs atop wargs, yet the element of surprise and their own fierceness allows them to put a good fight, and certainly holds the line long enough for [[spoiler:the eagles to arrive]].

--> '''Kíli:''' I said drop him!

--> '''Gandalf''': [[PreMortemOneLiner The dawn take you all!]]

* Gandalf coming to the rescue of Bilbo and the dwarves by [[spoiler:splitting a boulder in two, revealing sunlight, and [[TakenForGranite causing the trolls to turn to stone]].]]

* Radagast having the balls to single-handedly infiltrate Dol Guldur, knowing ''exactly'' what it is and who dwells there. He also takes [[spoiler:the Witch-King of Angmar]] in a duel.
* The cameo of the [[spoiler:Necromancer]] is as awesome as it is creepy. He barely appears, all we see of him is shadow and yet he manages to steal the scene.

* Thorin charging Azog across a burning tree after [[spoiler:Azog taunts Thorin that he encountered Thráin (Thorin's father), and that Thráin "stank of fear"]].
** From that same scene, [[spoiler:Bilbo flinging himself at Azog's mook in an attempt to save Thorin's life - and it WORKS!]] Plus, when he defended himself, he stabbed the orc not once but ''three times''.

* The entire scene where the [[spoiler: eagles rescue the company]]. Shows you exactly why [[spoiler:the great eagles]] are such powerful allies, and why Tolkien referred to them as a "dangerous device" for his narrative.
** The fact that they were shown to be intelligent, one using the power of its wings to roast several wargs in an inferno, and another ''physically toppling a tree'' to squash several of them instead of just attacking a single orc. It's awesome for those of us who haven't read the books and didn't know the [[spoiler:eagles]] were an actual race instead of a summon spell.

* The final scene: [[spoiler:Smaug awakens.]]

*** And his example inspires most of the other dwarves to follow him into battle, instead of simply hanging on for dear life.

** The fact that they were shown to be intelligent, one using the power of its wings to roast several wargs in an inferno, and another ''physically toppling a tree'' to squash several of them instead of just attacking a single orc. It's awesome for those of us who haven't read the books and didn't know the eagles were an actual race instead of a summon spell.

* Radagast vs. [[spoiler:the Witch-King of Angmar. A hippie wizard gets ambushed by the spirit of pure evil, takes him down with a few blows from his staff and escapes.]]

** Three trolls were all it took in ''Return of The King'' to scatter the Gondorian knights guarding the gates of Minas Tirith (though those were the NewAndImproved breed, immune to sunlight, trained and armored for battle). This RagtagBandOfMisfits would have made the fight a CurbStompBattle if Bilbo hadn't gotten caught.

** The fact that they were shown to be intelligent, one using the power of its wings to roast several wargs in an inferno, and another ''physically uprooting a tree'' to squash several of them instead of just attacking a single orc. It's awesome for those of us who haven't read the books and didn't know the eagles were an actual race instead of a summon spell.

---> Kíli: "I said drop him!"

** When the trolls discover and threaten Bilbo, Kíli is the first one to leap out of the bushes and demand the trolls let him go. He's clearly willing to fight all three to rescue Bilbo, even before the rest of the company arrives to back him up. He and Fíli promised they're be right behind him, and they kept that promise.

** When the trolls discover and threaten Bilbo, Kíli is the first one to leap out of the bushes and demand the trolls let him go. He's clearly, willing to fight all three to rescue Bilbo. He and Fíli promised they're be right behind him, and the kept that promise

** And let's not forget the chase between the wargs and his rabbits. He manages to outrun the wargs.
--->'''Gandalf:''' Those are Gundabad wargs. They'll outrun you.\\

** From that same scene, [[spoiler:Bilbo flinging himself at Azog's lieutenant in an attempt to save Thorin's life - and it WORKS!]] Plus when he defended himself, he stabbed the orc not once but ''three times''.
*** And his example inspires most of the other dwarves to follow him into battle, instead of simply hanging for their lives.

* The entire scene where the [[spoiler: eagles rescue the company]]. Shows you exactly why [[spoiler: the great eagles]] are such powerful allies, and why Tolkien referred to them as a "dangerous device" for his narrative.

* The final scene: [[spoiler: Smaug awakens.]]
* [[spoiler: The song in the credits, which is an extended and revised edition of "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpzkPzeewXI Misty Mountains Cold]]".]] Honestly, PeterJackson really knows how to play the unexpected.

* "''[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pyy_FIYE7EE Far over the misty mountains cold...]]''". That whole scene has the power to make even the rowdiest cinema audience go completely silent and listen to the haunting beauty filling their ears.
* The "Blunt the Knives" song. It's the scene where the dwarves reveal that they can match Legolas from LOTR in terms of dexterity, tossing around plates and fragile china one dwarf to another (Balin not even paying much attention as he does so) and it all ends up in a neat set of piles at the end.

* Bilbo's sword fight with a goblin before falling down the chasm.

** Gollum retracting the ButtMonkey status many labeled him with in LOTR and returning to his NightmareFuel roots.

** Bombur running along, and when he's dogpiled by a swarm of smaller goblins, he just keeps running!

** Dwalin when encountering a particularly large group of goblins sheathes his axe and picks up a big plank of wood and starts swatting the goblins off the edge as he charges into them.

** Every scene with Azog, period. Not only is he quite the AdaptationalBadass from a token mention in the book, but (related to the above point on special effects) he looks ''very'' real for a being that's purely computer-generated.
** Related: Thorin showing us how he got the title 'Oakenshield'.
* The final scene of the first film. [[spoiler: Smaug awakens.]]
* [[spoiler: The song in the credits, which is an extended and revised edition of "[[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EpzkPzeewXI Misty Mountains Cold]]".]] Honestly, PeterJackson really knows how to play the unexpected.

** The cinematography for the eagle scenes ''alone'' are a gorgeous sort of awesome.
* One for the elves when they ride out to eliminate the orc scouting party chasing the dwarves. They completely slaughter the orcs with almost no effort.
* Gandalf outsmarting Saruman by predicting he'd try to stop the dwarves from reclaiming Erebor and sending the dwarves away from Rivendell ahead of time. Not even Elrond and Galadriel caught onto his plan until it was too late.
* The cameo of the [[spoiler:Necromancer]] is as awesome as it is creepy. He barely appears, all we see of him is shadow and yet he manages to steal the scene.
* Bilbo sparing Gollum's life. It doesn't seem like much on its own, but then you remember this is the action that would eventually ''save all of Middle Earth''.
* The flashback to the Battle of Azanulbizar is full of this. Most notably Thorin using an oak branch as a shield and taking off Azog's arm.
** On top of that after Thrór's death, the dwarf army begins to rout, but once he cuts off Azog's arm, Thorin stands up and rallies his army, shouting a Dwarvish BattleCry and leading them to victory.
** Dwalin can be seen in the background of several shots headbutting any orc that gets in his way.
** For the orcs, Azog is seen knocking two dwarves into the air with one swing.
* A meta-example is how much more of the original lines from the book got into the film compared to ''TheLordOfTheRings'' trilogy. Bilbo starting his book with "In a hole in the ground there lived a hobbit", closely followed by Bilbo and Gandalf's argument over "Good morning", were a gratifying EstablishingCharacterMoment for the film itself for long-term fans.
* Bilbo's short speech to the company manages to perfectly encapsulate the philosophy a [[InnocentBystander hobbit]] [[TheHero hero]] would have. It's not a big declaration or a promise to eradicate some evil or enemy, there are just people who don't even have the simple comforts of home and he would like to fix that.
-->'''Bilbo Baggins''': ...I often think of Bag End. I miss my books. And my armchair. My garden. See, that's where I belong. That's home. And that's why I came back, 'cause... You don't have one. A home. It was taken from you. But I will help you take it back if I can.

** It's not in the final film but video blogs show Glóin throwing his biggest axe to Fíli, who jumps onto Kíli's shoulders and proceeds to calmly smack one of the trolls in the face with it. Hopefully that one will make it to the EE.