Frodo goes up to the counter and tries and fails to order a cup of tea. Samwise, who is accompanying him, says, “Master Frodo will have a grande green tea with room for cream, please.” The barista hands the cup to Frodo, and the entire shop cheers. “Huzzah!” they cry. “Look at Frodo Baggins, ordering that cup of tea all by himself!” Later, Sam puts out a fire in the kitchen and Frodo is given the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
You know what, I’m just gonna put it on this here actual post because this thing bothers me so much every single time this pops up on my dash.
Take a moment and remember that this is a ring containing pretty much pure evil that Frodo’s wearing around his neck while it whispers at him and tempts him and slowly drives him mad to the point of betraying his entire quest at the end when they actually get to Mount Doom, and that this ring got into Boromir’s head in no time at all compared to what Frodo has to deal with, and it even tempted fucking GALADRIEL. This is not just Frodo taking a happy little stroll while Sam does all the heavy lifting. He pretty much has to carry around something that is EATING HIS SOUL. People started going crazy just fucking LOOKING at the ring, so can you IMAGINE what it’d be like to deal with that every second of every day for months and months and months????
Yes, Samwise Gamgee is the one who gets Frodo through Mordor and the entire quest, to the point that he physically carries Frodo up Mount Doom. He is a truly amazing person who DOES deserve medals and adulation and all that. But Frodo needed that help because he was pretty much bearing the toxic physical embodiment of evil around his neck. His entire job is to carry maliciousness and temptation turned into a gold ring to the place it is going to fight the hardest to avoid, and he has to keep it out of his head, he has to fight that shit in a never-ending battle that EVERY OTHER CREATURE TO EVER LIVE has failed.
The fact Frodo’s fight is nonphysical and mostly takes place in his SOUL doesn’t mean it should be taken lightly, let alone outright ignored (as seen in this post). Frodo’s such a badass for getting the ring to Mount Doom without giving in to temptation. Sam’s a badass for getting Frodo there. They are both fucking amazing, just in different ways.
So with the starbucks thing, sure, yes, he tries and fails to order his tea, but he is fighting the world’s worst case of flu and can barely stay on his feet. And is also schizophrenic. His brain is currently telling him to do horrible things and something is whispering at him constantly, so Sam orders for him. That’d be a little more accurate.
Frodo
Monsters' Queen 