Q: Why is Netflix canceling its Marvel shows? First "Iron Fist," then "Luke Cage," now "Daredevil." Except for "Fist" I thought they were very successful. Now only "Jessica Jones" and "The Punisher" remain. What's going on? Any truth to the idea they all are going to wind up on an independent Marvel streaming service?
A: First of all, Disney is setting up its own streaming service, to be called Disney+, as the online home for the company's vast properties. Arriving in late 2019, its new offerings will include productions from the "Star Wars" family and the Marvel universe.
But the fate of the canceled Netflix series does not necessarily involve Disney's streaming plans. Deadline.com reported on conflicts that included changes in showrunners on some of the Marvel/Netflix shows, debates over how many episodes should be in a season, the cost of the shows and Netflix's greater pursuit of shows it can own. It did not own the Marvel properties, but is now, according to Deadline, "awash in new series and returning series that it holds the keys to."
In addition, Rolling Stone TV critic Alan Sepinwall has pointed to conflicts within Marvel, where the people running the movie side "do not like or get along with the Marvel TV execs," and the movie guys are doing the series for Disney+. The canceled series as they existed on Netflix may be done — while, this being Marvel, the characters could reappear somewhere else in the universe. Netflix even hinted at that in a statement to Deadline about "Daredevil," saying it will have the "Daredevil" reruns for years to come, and the character will live on in future Marvel projects. But it did not say where those projects would be.
Family ties
Q: Is Sara Gilbert related to Melissa Gilbert? I'm also wondering if Tracey Gold is related to Missy Gold.
A: "The Conners" star Sara Gilbert and former "Little House on the Prairie" star Melissa Gilbert are sisters. Tracey Gold ("Growing Pains") and Missy Gold ("Benson") are also sisters.
At the top of the hour: God
Q: I am trying to remember an episode from an old TV show. It concerned God speaking over the radio. Every few days God would give a short message. I thought for sure that it was a "Twilight Zone" episode, but I did not see it in its list of episodes.
A: There is a "Twilight Zone" episode called "Static" in which a radio is a key element. But if you are thinking of a radio carrying messages from God, you are probably remembering "The Next Voice You Hear," a 1950 movie in which people hear the voice of God on the radio. That film starred James Whitmore and Nancy Davis, who would become better known under a different name following her 1952 marriage to Ronald Reagan.
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