Raising Kanan Season 5 revealed a major twist after Kanan Stark (Mekai Curtis) decided to fulfill his revenge against his uncle, Marvin (London Brown), in the season's penultimate episode. The tenous relationship between young Kanan Stark and his uncle Marvin stood as one of the show's most layered family dynamics. Starz's hit crime series, Power Book III: Raising Kanan, introduced Marvin as the enforcer, the street-smart protector, and the emotional anchor of the Thomas family alongside his siblings Raq and Lou.
Marvin looked out for his nephew, Kanan, while trying to keep the family intact. However, the pair's bond escalated into hostile territory, mainly because Kanan's growing independence and darker impulses frequently clashed with Marvin's. By Raising Kanan Season 5, those tensions exploded into irreversible tragedy.
How Does Marvin Die In Raising Kanan Season 5 Episode 7
Power Book III: Raising Kanan Season 5, Episode 7, "Penultimate Means Second to Last," showed how Kanan Stark crossed a major line in the crime series by killing his uncle Marvin.
Marvin's death unfolded in an intimate confrontation rather than a chaotic shootout. Marvin visited a church and left a briefcase of cash with a priest for his daughter, Jukebox (Hailey Kilgore), in case something bad happened to him. This tragic foreshadowing was further amplified when Kanan arrived.
Marvin realized why his nephew was there. While Marvin remained fearless (he even taunted him), he still managed to deliver a chilling warning to Kanan, telling him that he would continue to see him in his nightmares.
Marven urged Kanan to get it over with before the pastor returns. In a quick yet decisive move, Kanan shot him dead and walked away, emphasizing the personal nature of the kill. Marvin joins the long list of dead characters in Raising Kanan, including Famous, Lou-Lou, and the crime-boss duo Snaps and Pops.
Kanan killing Marvin solidified his transformation into the cold, ruthless figure fans know from the original Power series. While the immediate trigger is personal payback, the root cause actually traces back to one tragic accident in the Season 5 premiere that set off a chain of inner family destruction.
Why Kanan Kills Marvin Is Due To Kanan Wanting Revenge After Marvin's Punishment Against Him
The direct motivation for Kanan's brutal revenge on Marvin was the beatdown his uncle delivered in Raising Kanan Episode 5, "School of War."
Earlier in the season, Raq (Patina Miller) had kept secret that Kanan was responsible for Lou's death. In the final season's opening moments, Kanan confronted his mother, Raq, with a gun, believing she was behind the deaths of the people closest to him. As he hesitated, Raq's bodyguard Ruben intervened with his own weapon. Lou jumped in to protect his nephew, but Kanan fired back, fatally shooting his uncle Lou by accident. This one misfire created a cycle of grief and violence that culminated in Marvin's death at the hands of Kanan.
When Raq finally revealed the truth to Marvin, partly to force him to send a message to Kanan amid their escalating war, Marvin tracked down his nephew.
Marvin subjected Kanan to a beatdown in his apartment, leaving him bloodied and bruised on the floor. Marvin nearly killed him as well, stopped only by Jukebox's intervention. The humiliation, combined with the betrayal he felt from his family, left Kanan determined to settle the score against his uncle.
By Episode 7, Kanan's growing ruthlessness fully took shape. Killing Marvin was not the product of pure rage over the beating; rather, it was a cold, calculated decision that cemented his choice to become a full-blown villain in the future. It also sends a strong message that he no longer hesitates with family blood, making him even more dangerous.
