Fascinating stuff, although I disagree about the red-eye. I always interpreted the red glow in the eyes to be an indication that they were replicants.
I think the author didn't want to include any spoilers. That the red eyes aren't gaffes is even hinted at with "How strange! I’m sure it won’t turn out to be significant". This phrase pops up again at a later time in the article around a similar plot hint.