this post was submitted on 31 Jul 2024
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Lord of the memes

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[–] [email protected] 57 points 5 months ago (1 children)

I think, if Elrond took it by force, he wouldn't be able to drop it in either.

[–] NatakuNox 33 points 5 months ago (2 children)

Correct. Elf's would be the worst ring carriers because their strong ties to magic. Elrond would have been possessed by the ring the moment he touched it.

[–] [email protected] 46 points 5 months ago (1 children)

This is part of why galandrial was so excited for herself when she resisted.

She was pretty clear on what her having the ring would mean (at least in her mind, but she was generally pretty smart):

...in place of a Dark Lord you would have a Queen! Not dark but beautiful, and terrible as the Morn! Treacherous as the Seas! Stronger than the foundations of the Earth! All shall love me and despair!

[–] samus12345 12 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

This makes me recall a part in Lord of the Rings Online - when you finally leave Moria and go to Lothlorien, you encounter Frodo there. The game has a hope/dread mechanic where being in the presence of someone particularly heroic or evil will make the meter go one way or the other, buffing or debuffing you accordingly. I noticed the dread meter increased when I approached him and was confused until I remembered that he was carrying the ring with him. It was a cleverly subtle way of depicting the burden he carried even though he wasn't showing it on the outside.

[–] [email protected] 12 points 5 months ago (1 children)
[–] [email protected] 10 points 5 months ago
[–] someguy3 55 points 5 months ago (3 children)
[–] [email protected] 26 points 5 months ago

Elrond can't drop Isildur into the fire because Isildur has the ring and nobody can intentionally destroy the ring.

Gollum was only able to destroy the ring because he's fucking stupid.

[–] gofsckyourself 21 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

Higher quality version without the ifunny watermark

[–] [email protected] 10 points 5 months ago (2 children)

Re: your username
Filesystem check yourself before you filesystem wreck yourself

[–] gofsckyourself 6 points 5 months ago

You are the first person to recite the magic phrase!

[–] samus12345 2 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago)

$fsck yourself before you $fswk yourself

[–] misterundercoat 3 points 5 months ago (1 children)
[–] someguy3 11 points 5 months ago

That was my first read, but I think the color change is supposed to mean he's recalling the story later.

[–] Cowbob12 22 points 5 months ago* (last edited 5 months ago) (1 children)

I remember reading or listening to a short story where the author described what would've happened if Elrond had pushed Isildur into the fire in order to destroy the ring. If I remember correctly Elrond emerges from mount doom and eventually communicates what happened at the peak and his action of killing Isildur in order to destroy the ring, this ends up angering the humans who would later start a war with the elves in order to avenge the death of Isildur. This leads to massive casualties on both the human and elven side but the war abruptly stops as a massive rain suddenly appears and lasts for many many days, flooding the world and destroying it. Finally, it is revealed that the rain was caused by the tears of Illuvatar being shed over the terrible slaying of his children amongst themselves.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Guess he wasn't watching the first couple of wars

[–] CaptainBlagbird 5 points 5 months ago

You mean like the rebellion of Númenor against the Valar? 👀

[–] Pumafred9 20 points 5 months ago (2 children)

C isn't really an option. Elrond and Isildur were never near Orodruin for him to cast it in as an option. Isildur claimed it after he cut it from Sauron's hand.

My answer would be D too.

[–] [email protected] 14 points 5 months ago (2 children)

They are in the movie, no?

[–] [email protected] 3 points 5 months ago

In the movies yes, but not in the book as far as I remember

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 months ago (1 children)

Wouldn't he be too powerful with the ring for them to take on?

[–] [email protected] 5 points 5 months ago (1 children)

It doesn't look like that's how it works in the movies at least. I feel like it bends destiny, or make you "very lucky" in a way (other than invisible of course).

So maybe yea Elrond would trip and fall in the lava himself.

[–] redhorsejacket 4 points 5 months ago

Apologies, I'm currently in a storm shelter waiting for the weather to pass, so I've naught to do but unleash the unsourced head canon fire house.

My impression from the movies was that the ring WOULD grant power to someone who sought to use it for that purpose, if for no other reason than to make itself even more precious (ha) to the wielder. In the case of Isildur (who, as a Man, is implied to "above all else, desire power"), the Ring knew it was in a bind. Sauron just got yeeted into the shadow dimension, and it was in the one place it could be destroyed. It NEEDED Isildur to get him out of there, pronto. So, if Elrond decided to force the issue, my assumption was always that it would lend Isildur some fraction of the power Sauron put into it as matter of self-preservation. Furthermore, by granting Isildur a taste of its power, he could fall even more under its control because power is what he wants. More self-preservation from the evilest bit of jewelry ever forged. Finally, by the time this hypothetical confrontation between Isildur and Elrond would occur, Isildur has already fallen to the Ring's temptation and rejected the call to destroy it. So, the Ring may not have any qualms about strengthening Isildur, as doing so would not endanger it at all.

Now, to contrast with Frodo (and Bilbo, to some extent). They do not desire power, and so the Ring's biggest bargaining chip is rendered useless. Additionally, for 99.9% of the journey Frodo maintains his resolution to destroy the Ring. Granting power to Frodo at any point prior to those last few steps would be a risk to it's existence.

It's been a very long time since I read the trilogy, so I don't know how much of this interpretation conflicts with legitimate explanations Tolkien gave in the text or in his correspondences, but it works for me within the context of the films.

[–] angrystego 3 points 5 months ago

I think the meme is about the film version.

[–] bisby 8 points 5 months ago

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P68HWtN4zG8

In Deep Geek always has the deep answers to LotR questions like this.

[–] [email protected] 2 points 5 months ago

I would obviously try to convince him to destroy it, or give it to a very small subset of intelligent and responsible people who could study it.