View source for 1042: Never

{{comic
| number    = 1042
| date      = April 13, 2012
| title     = Never
| image     = never.png
| titletext = I'll never forget you--at least, the parts of you that were important red flags.
}}

==Explanation==
This comic plays with that some phrases are generally interpreted as communicating positive sentiments, although they strictly are ambiguous.

[[Cueball]] is mulling over a previous relationship. Usually when someone says something like "I will never have with anyone what I had with (someone)" it implies that the couple had something so good that it could never be replaced. But when he thinks "Thank God", it is suddenly implied that the relationship was so horrible he's thankful he'll never have to experience it again.

The title text goes along the same line: "I'll never forget you" is usually positive – but then it becomes clear that it is the {{w|red flag (signal)|red flags}}, the warning signs about the person that they would not be a good fit for a serious relationship and marriage, that he'll never forget. The pond may be a reference to the Star Trek: The Next Generation episode {{w|Skin of Evil}}.

There is a similar twist in comics [[71: In the Trees]] and [[334: Wasteland]].

==Transcript==
:[Cueball staring into a pond.]
:Cueball: I know that no matter where I go
:Cueball: or who I build a life with

:Cueball: I will never have with anyone
:Cueball: what I had with you

:[Cueball walks off.]
:Cueball: Thank god

{{Comic discussion}}
[[Category:Comics featuring Cueball]]
[[Category:Language]]
[[Category:Romance]]