spylang/spy

Nested tuple unpacking

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#456 opened on Apr 7, 2026

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good first issuehelp wanted

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Description

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This should work:

def main() -> None:
    tup = (1, (2, 3))
    a, (b, c) = tup
    print(a + b + c)

Currently it fails with AssertionError in the parser:

❯ spy /tmp/x.spy 
Traceback (most recent call last):
[...]
  File "/home/antocuni/anaconda/spy/spy/parser.py", line 544, in from_py_stmt_Assign
    assert isinstance(item, py_ast.Name)
           ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
AssertionError

Contributor guide

Research direction
Examine the parser.py method from py stmt Assign, particularly the assertion that fails when a tuple contains nested tuples. Modify the logic to handle nested tuple unpacking.
Tech stack
python
Domain
compilers
Issue type
Bug
DifficultyEstimated implementation difficulty for a new contributor, from 1 for very small changes to 5 for expert-level work.
2
Estimated timeA rough time range for an experienced contributor to investigate, implement, test, and prepare a pull request.
1-3 hours
Activity statusHow available the issue appears right now: fresh, active, stale, blocked, or waiting on maintainer input.
Active
ClarityHow clearly the issue explains the expected change, acceptance criteria, and next step.
Clear
Prerequisites
GitPython
Newbie friendlinessA 1-100 score estimating how approachable this issue is for first-time contributors.
80