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 --cached2. 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:
- Explain what's wrong in 1 sentence
- Fix it immediately
- 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)?