#that iron man 2 moment with the hologram expanding out like FOOM

[the-elusive-soleil]

Elrond telling the Fellowship "no oath or bond is laid on you to go further than you will" hits a bit differently once you realize that he grew up in the later part of the First Age and a) lost his parents, b) saw the city where he was born get destroyed, and c) had a front-row seat to Maedhros' and Maglor's issues, all stemming from the last time someone swore a great big Oath pertaining to an object of power.

"Isildur would not listen to our counsel" hits WAY differently when you think about how Isildur was among the last direct descendants of Elrond's twin brother, his twin brother who chose to be mortal and died thousands of years ago, and about how so many people Elrond was close to in the First Age died or were lost because of the trending objects of power back then (except for Gil-galad, who had just recently died because of a different object of power), and how Elrond must have been desperate to not have to go through this nonsense again, please not another person he's close to getting caught up by something like this. And then Isildur keeps the Ring anyway. And he dies.