Marvel's The Punisher: Ranking Every Major Character From Worst To Best
9. Sam Stein
As well as layered villains, another thing the Marvel-Netflix series often provide is a shocking death halfway through the season. While not as jaw-dropping as Cottonmouth's demise in Luke Cage or Sigourney Weaver's exit from The Defenders, it was still a surprise when Dinah Madani's partner Sam Stein was murdered by Billy Russo in episode 8.
But hey, maybe we should have seen it coming. Sam wasn't an essential cog in the machine and therefore dispensable, though his role as light comic relief and Dinah's conscience and common sense was welcome. The two Homeland agents' friendly chemistry was enjoyable and Michael Nathanson did a good job with the part.
Overall, though, Sam served his purpose in the first half of the season and his death was a nice twist to raise the stakes for the remaining few episodes, in particular for Madani's personal storyline. R.I.P. Sam.