diff --git a/backend/.basedpyright/baseline.json b/backend/.basedpyright/baseline.json
index a669dffb..2a942acc 100644
--- a/backend/.basedpyright/baseline.json
+++ b/backend/.basedpyright/baseline.json
@@ -580,14 +580,6 @@
                     "endColumn": 89,
                     "lineCount": 1
                 }
-            },
-            {
-                "code": "reportArgumentType",
-                "range": {
-                    "startColumn": 17,
-                    "endColumn": 18,
-                    "lineCount": 1
-                }
             }
         ],
         "./app/plex/tmdb.py": [
diff --git a/backend/app/sync/playlists.py b/backend/app/sync/playlists.py
index 3c02ff58..bde36501 100644
--- a/backend/app/sync/playlists.py
+++ b/backend/app/sync/playlists.py
@@ -22,7 +22,7 @@ from app import logs, progress, quota
 from app.auth import has_read_scope
 from app.models import Channel, Playlist, PlaylistItem, User, Video
 from app.sync.runner import token_users
-from app.sync.subscriptions import should_prune
+from app.sync.subscriptions import vanished
 from app.sync.videos import apply_video_details, parse_dt
 from app.youtube.client import YouTubeClient, YouTubeError
 
@@ -338,18 +338,10 @@ def pull_user_playlists(db: Session, user: User) -> dict:
                     Playlist.source == "local",
                     Playlist.yt_playlist_id.is_not(None),
                 )
-            )
-            .scalars()
-            .all()
-        )
-        # Drop mirrors whose YouTube playlist no longer exists — locked first, as every item write.
-        # Never on an empty answer that contradicts the mirrors we hold: the same 200-with-no-items
-        # blip `should_prune` guards the subscriptions against would drop every mirror (E32 S2).
-        gone = (
-            [pl for ytid, pl in existing.items() if ytid not in yt_ids]
-            if should_prune(len(yt_ids), len(existing))
-            else []
+            ).scalars()
         )
+        # Drop vanished mirrors (none on an empty answer) — locked first, as every item write.
+        gone = vanished(existing, yt_ids)
         if gone:
             lock_playlists(db, *(pl.id for pl in gone))
         for pl in gone:
diff --git a/backend/app/sync/subscriptions.py b/backend/app/sync/subscriptions.py
index ae3cbe92..4621dbfa 100644
--- a/backend/app/sync/subscriptions.py
+++ b/backend/app/sync/subscriptions.py
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 """Import the authenticated user's YouTube subscriptions and channel metadata."""
 
-from collections.abc import Iterable
+from collections.abc import Collection, Iterable
 from datetime import datetime, timedelta, timezone
 
 from sqlalchemy import or_, select
@@ -119,6 +119,15 @@ def should_prune(fetched_count: int, existing_count: int) -> bool:
     return fetched_count > 0 or existing_count == 0
 
 
+def vanished[K, V](existing: dict[K, V], listed: Collection[K]) -> list[V]:
+    """The local mirrors whose key the remote listing no longer has — none at all when the listing
+    is an empty answer that contradicts them (`should_prune`). The YouTube playlist mirrors use it:
+    without it, one blip dropped every mirror (E32 S2)."""
+    if not should_prune(len(listed), len(existing)):
+        return []
+    return [row for key, row in existing.items() if key not in listed]
+
+
 def import_subscriptions(db: Session, user: User) -> dict:
     """Pull all subscriptions for `user`, upsert channels + subscription links, prune
     channels the user has unsubscribed from on YouTube, and fetch channel details for