Star Trek Prodigy, Tower of God, and more new TV and anime this week

If you’re in the States, then this week is July Fourth. If you’re not in the States, then this week is just July 4 — congrats to all who get to mark the day however they are, wherever they are! No surprise, but: I think we should all celebrate by watching TV. Particularly if you’re in for anime, there’s a lot of premieres this week on Crunchyroll, meaning you can roll right through the long (or regular!) weekend with a blitz of new programs.

Here’s the best new TV premieres (and just a few of the anime previews) this week.

New shows on Netflix

Star Trek: Prodigy

Genre: Star Trek (animated YA adventures edition)
Release date: July 1, with all episodes
Showrunner/creator: Kevin and Dan Hageman
Cast: Brett Gray, Ella Purnell, Jason Mantzoukas, and more

Prodigy has survived cancellation (read: was in production for season 2 when it got axed by Paramount) and has jumped over to a new network (read: was subsequently picked up by Netflix). That means that if you liked what Prodigy was putting down in season 1, you will probably like it when it makes its way to Netflix.

New shows on Max

Hard Knocks: Offseason with the New York Giants

Genre: Docuseries, sports drama
Release date: July 2
Cast: The players and staff of the New York Giants

The New York Giants are entering their 100th season. It’s quite an accomplishment, but they (like all NFL teams) won’t settle for anything less than a Super Bowl slot. Will they get it? Who’s to say — but now we can at least watch what they’re saying during the offseason.

New shows on Crunchyroll

Nier: Automata Ver1.1a season 2

Genre: Sci-fi action
Release date: July 5, with one episode
Studio: A-1 Pictures

Fans of the Nier: Automata, rejoice: The gorgeous anime adaptation of the hit game is finally making its return this summer with a second season following the first’s protracted and troubled development. Hopefully A-1 Pictures has ironed out all the details for this new season so we won’t be waiting weeks or even months between episodes.

The second “cour” (the term for a production block of anime averaging between 10 and 14 episodes) will pick up immediately after the first, with 9S having learned the shocking truth behind Project YoRHa after defeating the alien robots Adam and Eve alongside 2B. We’ll have to wait until July 5 to see just how much Nier: Automata Ver1.1a will diverge from the story of the original game. —Toussaint Egan

Tower of God season 2

Genre: Fantasy action
Release date: July 7, with one episode
Studio: The Answer Studio

There’s a (in-universe) six-year gap between seasons here, and while we’ll be following up with Bam, Rachel, and the rest of the season 1 crew — along with their rankings! — season 2 is also bringing in some new protagonists. Meet Wangnan and Jyu, who are a little more advanced in the tower’s levels than we’ve seen so far. Time to find out what new challenges this mysterious tower can bring!

My Deer Friend Nokotan

Genre: Slice-of-life comedy
Release date: July 7, with one episode
Studio: Wit Studio

Based on the 2019 manga by Oshioshio, My Deer Friend Nokotan is a comedy that centers on the misadventures of Torako Koshi, a former “yankee” (see: delinquent) girl trying to keep up her appearance as a ideal student at her new high school. That becomes significantly more difficult after she saves Noko Shikanoko, a self-described “deer-girl hybrid” who begins to follow Torako around and get up to all sorts of shenanigans.

The trailer looks ridiculous, with realistic CG depictions of deer juxtaposed with Noko’s chibi-like appearance. There’s even a cute callback to the ending of 1984’s Nausicaä of the Valley of the Wind, with Noko being lifted above a marching herd of deer while surrounded by an aura of light. We’ll see how the actual series holds up when it premieres this weekend. —TE

Wistoria: Wand and Sword

Genre: Fantasy action
Release date: July 7, with one episode
Studio: Actas, Bandai Namco Pictures

Based on the fantasy adventure manga by author Fujino Ōmori and illustrator Toshi Aoi, Wistoria: Wand and Sword centers on Will Serfort, a young student who enrolls at a prestigious magic academy with hopes of achieving his dream of becoming one of the most powerful magic users in the world. However, much like My Hero Academia’s Izuku Midoriya or Solo Leveling’s Sung Jin-woo, Will has a critical roadblock: He can’t cast even the simplest of spells to save his own life!

That’s not gonna stop him, though, as he descends into the dungeons beneath the school to slay vicious monsters as an alternate way to earn academic credits. He’s like Naruto’s Rock Lee, only instead of being terrifyingly proficient in taijutsu, he’s an absolute beast when it comes to sword fighting.

I’m not familiar with the source material myself, but I am intrigued by the fact that Tatsuya Yoshihara, who previously worked as the action director on 2022’s Chainsaw Man and the chief director on the final season of Black Clover, is the director on Wistoria: Wand and Sword. Which means, at the very least, audiences can expect some exquisite action sequences. —TE