BubbleTea Code Review

Quick Reference

Issue Type Reference

Elm architecture, tea.Cmd as data references/elm-architecture.md

Model state, message handling references/model-update.md

View rendering, Lipgloss styling references/view-styling.md

Component composition, Huh forms references/composition.md

Bubbles components (list, table, etc.) references/bubbles-components.md

CRITICAL: Avoid False Positives

Read elm-architecture.md first! The most common review mistake is flagging correct patterns as bugs.

NOT Issues (Do NOT Flag These)

Pattern Why It's Correct

return m, m.loadData()

tea.Cmd is returned immediately; runtime executes async

Value receiver on Update()

Standard BubbleTea pattern; model returned by value

Nested m.child, cmd = m.child.Update(msg)

Normal component composition

Helper functions returning tea.Cmd

Creates command descriptor, no I/O in Update

tea.Batch(cmd1, cmd2)

Commands execute concurrently by runtime

ACTUAL Issues (DO Flag These)

Pattern Why It's Wrong

os.ReadFile() in Update Blocks UI thread

http.Get() in Update Network I/O blocks

time.Sleep() in Update Freezes UI

<-channel in Update (blocking) May block indefinitely

huh.Form.Run() in Update Blocking call

Review Checklist

Architecture

• No blocking I/O in Update() (file, network, sleep)

• Helper functions returning tea.Cmd are NOT flagged as blocking

• Commands used for all async operations

Model & Update

• Model is immutable (Update returns new model, not mutates)

• Init returns proper initial command (or nil)

• Update handles all expected message types

• WindowSizeMsg handled for responsive layout

• tea.Batch used for multiple commands

• tea.Quit used correctly for exit

View & Styling

• View is a pure function (no side effects)

• Lipgloss styles defined once, not in View

• Key bindings use key.Matches with help.KeyMap

Components

• Sub-component updates propagated correctly

• Bubbles components initialized with dimensions

• Huh forms embedded via Update loop (not Run())

Critical Patterns

Model Must Be Immutable

// BAD - mutates model func (m Model) Update(msg tea.Msg) (tea.Model, tea.Cmd) { m.items = append(m.items, newItem) // mutation! return m, nil }

// GOOD - returns new model func (m Model) Update(msg tea.Msg) (tea.Model, tea.Cmd) { newItems := make([]Item, len(m.items)+1) copy(newItems, m.items) newItems[len(m.items)] = newItem m.items = newItems return m, nil }

Commands for Async/IO

// BAD - blocking in Update func (m Model) Update(msg tea.Msg) (tea.Model, tea.Cmd) { data, _ := os.ReadFile("config.json") // blocks UI! m.config = parse(data) return m, nil }

// GOOD - use commands func (m Model) Update(msg tea.Msg) (tea.Model, tea.Cmd) { return m, loadConfigCmd() }

func loadConfigCmd() tea.Cmd { return func() tea.Msg { data, err := os.ReadFile("config.json") if err != nil { return errMsg{err} } return configLoadedMsg{parse(data)} } }

Styles Defined Once

// BAD - creates new style each render func (m Model) View() string { style := lipgloss.NewStyle().Bold(true).Foreground(lipgloss.Color("205")) return style.Render("Hello") }

// GOOD - define styles at package level or in model var titleStyle = lipgloss.NewStyle().Bold(true).Foreground(lipgloss.Color("205"))

func (m Model) View() string { return titleStyle.Render("Hello") }

When to Load References

• First time reviewing BubbleTea → elm-architecture.md (prevents false positives)

• Reviewing Update function logic → model-update.md

• Reviewing View function, styling → view-styling.md

• Reviewing component hierarchy → composition.md

• Using Bubbles components → bubbles-components.md

Review Questions

• Is Update() free of blocking I/O? (NOT: "is the cmd helper blocking?")

• Is the model immutable in Update?

• Are Lipgloss styles defined once, not in View?

• Is WindowSizeMsg handled for resizing?

• Are key bindings documented with help.KeyMap?

• Are Bubbles components sized correctly?