Given that imgur seems to be accesible again (for the time being at least) but for the images that now or in future are no longer accessible I think using Option #2 would be a way to simply get it over and done with and let the past be the past.
I start to think they created a bandwidth control system for each site. That is, when a certain site reaches a certain bandwidth, they block the site for a number of days, until the counter is reset. Perhaps they want to implement a system so that sites pay to use their bandwidth.
This is just my theory. Because I find it strange, for a few days the images work and then they stop working for a while, then they work again. I don't see them manually turning on/off access to Bitcointalk. But it's just a theory, it could be wrong.