Subagent return re-renders startup banner, indistinguishable from session restart
Description
When a subagent (Explore/Plan) spawned via the Agent tool completes and returns to the main agent, the terminal re-renders the full startup banner (robot icon, version info, working directory). This is followed by "Philosophising..." or "Galloping..." with the --continue/--resume tip, making it visually identical to a real session restart or crash recovery.
Steps to Reproduce
- Start a conversation that uses the Agent tool to spawn subagents (e.g.,
subagent_type: "Explore"or"Plan") - Observe the terminal when the subagent completes and control returns to the main agent
- The full startup banner re-renders as if Claude Code restarted
Expected Behavior
When returning from a subagent to the main agent, the UI should clearly indicate it is a subagent completion, not a session restart. For example:
- Display a message like "Subagent completed, returning to main conversation"
- Skip the startup banner on subagent return
- Or visually differentiate it from a fresh start (e.g., different color/icon)
Actual Behavior
The startup banner (robot icon + version + path) is re-rendered identically to a fresh session start. The only way to confirm the session is the same is to check whether the JSONL file changed:
ls -lt ~/.claude/projects/<project>/*.jsonl | head -3
Environment
- Claude Code v2.1.90
- Model: Opus 4.6 (1M context) / Claude Max
- macOS (Darwin 25.3.0)
- Terminal: default macOS Terminal with caffeinate
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