I think it would be very good to show such things, I have no clue if gdb can tell you the return value (i assume it can), this is a feature I have been missing since for a very long time since I abandoned VC. And it is just not recursive methods, it could be you ca nhave a stetment like .. return someOtherMethod();
How hard is it to have this in place, the return value could be printed out either int watch window, or in the debug pane at the bottom.