bug(sdd-status): verify-report parser blocks archive on compliant prose containing Pending #848

Pre-flight Checklist

• I have searched existing issues and this is not a duplicate
• I understand that PRs will be rejected if the linked issue does not have status:approved

📝 Bug Description

sdd-status can block archive with verify-report.md is not clearly passing even when the verify report has a clear passing verdict and all tests pass.

The false negative happens because the verify-report parser treats the standalone word PENDING as a blocker anywhere in the report, including ordinary compliant prose inside a spec compliance matrix.

In internal/sddstatus/status.go, the relevant behavior appears to be:

var reportPendingPattern = regexp.MustCompile(`(?i)\b(?:TODO|PENDING)\b`)

and reportLineHasBlocker(...) returns true when that pattern appears on any line.

This blocked archive for a report line like:

| Per-interface polling turn sequencing and timeout ownership | Pending apply/update messages drain before final poll | `test_getDataToInterface_owner_turn_orders_versions_tables_pending_then_final_poll` | ✅ COMPLIANT |

That row is explicitly compliant, but the word Pending caused the report to be treated as not clearly passing.

🔄 Steps to Reproduce

1. Create an OpenSpec SDD change with all tasks completed.
2. Add a verify-report.md with a passing verdict, for example **Verdict**: **PASS** and ### Verdict / PASS.
3. Include a compliant matrix row or test name containing the standalone word Pending, e.g. Pending apply/update messages drain before final poll.
4. Run:

gentle-ai sdd-status <change> --cwd <repo> --json --instructions

✅ Expected Behavior

sdd-status should treat the report as passing when:

• the verdict is PASS;
• no actual blocking findings exist;
• the word Pending appears only in ordinary descriptive prose or a passing/compliant row.

The parser should only treat pending/TODO markers as blockers in explicit blocker contexts, task status fields, or non-compliant findings.

❌ Actual Behavior

sdd-status reports:

nextRecommended: verify
archive: blocked
blockedReasons: verify-report.md is not clearly passing

Removing or renaming the descriptive word Pending from the passing compliance row makes sdd-status return:

nextRecommended: archive
archive: ready
blockedReasons: []

Gentle AI Version

Observed with gentle-ai 1.37.2 from CLI output.

Operating System

Windows

AI Agent / Client

OpenCode

Shell

bash

📋 Affected Area

CLI (commands, flags)

💡 Logs / Error Output

blockedReasons: ["verify-report.md is not clearly passing."]

Additional Context

This is a parser false positive, not a product verification failure. In the observed case:

• full native test suite passed;
• focused command also passed;
• verify report said PASS;
• no CRITICAL findings remained;
• archive became ready only after replacing Pending with Queued in report prose and avoiding the test name containing _pending_ in the same row.