Fresh Eyes Review

Fresh Eyes Review

Re-read all code you just wrote or modified with a fresh perspective. Look for obvious bugs, errors, problems, and confusion that are easy to miss when deep in implementation.

When to Use

• After completing a feature or fix
• Before committing changes
• When you feel like something might be off
• After a long coding session

Process

1. Identify Changed Code

Find all files you modified in this session. If unclear, ask the user or check recent git changes:

git diff --name-only HEAD~1
git diff --name-only --cached

2. Re-read with Fresh Eyes

Read each modified file completely. Pretend you've never seen this code before. Look for:

Logic errors

• Off-by-one errors
• Inverted conditions
• Missing null/​undefined checks
• Race conditions
• Incorrect comparisons (== vs ===, > vs >=)

Obvious bugs

• Typos in variable names
• Copy-paste errors
• Forgotten return statements
• Unused variables that should be used
• Wrong function called

Missing pieces

• Error handling gaps
• Edge cases not covered
• Cleanup code missing (close connections, clear timeouts)
• Validation missing at boundaries

Confusion risks

• Misleading variable names
• Complex logic without comments
• Inconsistent patterns within the file
• Magic numbers without explanation

3. Fix Issues

For each issue found:

1. Explain what's wrong in 1 sentence
2. Fix it immediately
3. Move to the next issue

Don't ask for permission. Just fix obvious problems.

4. Report Summary

After fixing, provide a brief summary:

## Fresh Eyes Review

Fixed 3 issues:
- `api/​users.ts:47` — Missing null check on user.profile
- `api/​users.ts:82` — Off-by-one in pagination (used > instead of >=)
- `utils/​format.ts:15` — Typo: `formattedDte` → `formattedDate`

No other issues found.

If nothing found:

## Fresh Eyes Review

Reviewed 4 files. No issues found.

What NOT to Do

• Don't refactor working code
• Don't add features
• Don't change style preferences
• Don't optimize prematurely
• Don't add comments to obvious code
• Don't reorganize file structure

Focus only on bugs, errors, and problems. If it works and isn't broken, leave it alone.

Checklist

Run through mentally for each file:

• All variables initialized before use?
• All functions return what they should?
• All loops terminate correctly?
• All conditions handle both branches?
• All async operations awaited?
• All errors caught or propagated?
• All resources cleaned up?
• All edge cases handled (empty, null, zero, negative)?