Marvin "Marv" Merchants (born March 27, 1959) is one of the main antagonists in Home Alone and in Home Alone 2: Lost in New York . In comparison to how he is portrayed in the sequel, the buffoonish aspect of his character is not as exaggerated, presenting him as more sincere in his stupidity. His flaws are presented as incredibly poor judgment and acting without thinking (instead of being portrayed with partial mental deficiency as he would be in the second film). In the first film, Marv comes up with the nickname for him and his partner as the "Wet Bandits" using the act of turning on sink faucets and leaving the water running as their calling card in each house they burglarize.