[Rimbaud]

Along with littlemanpoet's post above, I have always seen teh Eagles as Istar related, rather than purely battle-connected. They indeed do fall into a deus ex machina position within the books. I have reconciled this somewhat, by use of the first point. The Eagles would not come at the behest of just anybody, and perhaps not at the behest of anything lesser than one of the Ainur, here the Valar and their assistants. By this I mean, that I simply see them as an extension of Gandalf's powers, inherent as a Maia. I do not mean this to detract from their official place as Manwë's messengers and limousine service, but simply as a device for aligning their role with the characters familiar within the trilogy.