#define GRAPH_OID_LEN GRAPH_OID_LEN_SHA1
 
 #define GRAPH_OCTOPUS_EDGES_NEEDED 0x80000000
-#define GRAPH_PARENT_MISSING 0x7fffffff
 #define GRAPH_EDGE_LAST_MASK 0x7fffffff
 #define GRAPH_PARENT_NONE 0x70000000
 
                                              commit_to_sha1);
 
                        if (edge_value < 0)
-                               edge_value = GRAPH_PARENT_MISSING;
+                               BUG("missing parent %s for commit %s",
+                                   oid_to_hex(&parent->item->object.oid),
+                                   oid_to_hex(&(*list)->object.oid));
                }
 
                hashwrite_be32(f, edge_value);
                                              nr_commits,
                                              commit_to_sha1);
                        if (edge_value < 0)
-                               edge_value = GRAPH_PARENT_MISSING;
+                               BUG("missing parent %s for commit %s",
+                                   oid_to_hex(&parent->item->object.oid),
+                                   oid_to_hex(&(*list)->object.oid));
                }
 
                hashwrite_be32(f, edge_value);
                                                  commit_to_sha1);
 
                        if (edge_value < 0)
-                               edge_value = GRAPH_PARENT_MISSING;
+                               BUG("missing parent %s for commit %s",
+                                   oid_to_hex(&parent->item->object.oid),
+                                   oid_to_hex(&(*list)->object.oid));
                        else if (!parent->next)
                                edge_value |= GRAPH_LAST_EDGE;
 
                        count_distinct++;
        }
 
-       if (count_distinct >= GRAPH_PARENT_MISSING)
+       if (count_distinct >= GRAPH_EDGE_LAST_MASK)
                die(_("the commit graph format cannot write %d commits"), count_distinct);
 
        commits.nr = 0;
        }
        num_chunks = num_extra_edges ? 4 : 3;
 
-       if (commits.nr >= GRAPH_PARENT_MISSING)
+       if (commits.nr >= GRAPH_EDGE_LAST_MASK)
                die(_("too many commits to write graph"));
 
        compute_generation_numbers(&commits, report_progress);