The Art of Code Review: Beyond Syntax Checking

Rethinking Code Review

After reviewing thousands of PRs over the past decade, I've realized that the best code reviews have nothing to do with catching bugs.

What Great Reviews Look Like

They ask questions instead of making demands:

• Bad: "This should use a factory pattern"
• Good: "What led you to this approach? Have you considered a factory pattern here?"

They focus on the big picture:

• Architecture and design decisions
• Edge cases and error handling
• Performance implications at scale

They teach and learn:

Every review is an opportunity for both the author and reviewer to grow.

The Review Pyramid

I think about reviews in three layers:

1. Correctness — Does it do what it should?
2. Design — Is it well-structured and maintainable?
3. Style — Is it consistent with the codebase?

Automate layer 3 (linters, formatters). Spend your human energy on layers 1 and 2.

Building Review Culture

• Set clear expectations: review within 24 hours
• Keep PRs small (< 400 lines)
• Use PR templates to provide context
• Celebrate great PRs publicly

The ROI of good code review culture compounds over time. It's the highest-leverage activity for engineering teams.