Quote:
Originally Posted by ironies
Gandalf was more than a match for any one of the nazghul, perhaps een all of them. He was a Maia after all. In fact, he was pretty close to Sauron's equal, although perhaps less of a warrior and more of a counsellor.
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It's worth noting that in Letter 183 (p.243 footnote) Professor Tolkien described Sauron as being "Of the same kind as Gandalf and Saruman, but of a far higher order." Make of that what you will.
As for the film, it does indeed appear that Gandalf's staff is different after his escape from Isengard, although it can be difficult to tell. Compare his staff in the Isengard scene:
http://www.council-of-elrond.com/cas...ndalfgrey5.jpg
with his staff as it appears in Moria:
http://middle-earth.xenite.org/files...f-moria-01.jpg
The head certainly looks different, pointier in the later image.