What's on TV this week—UnPrisoned and Cobra Kai

Welcome to What’s On, our weekly picks of must-watch shows. Here’s what you need to watch from Sunday, July 14 to Thursday, July 18. All times are Eastern. [Note: The weekend edition of What’s On drops on Fridays.]

The biggies

UnPrisoned (Hulu, Tuesday, 12:01 a.m.)

The underrated UnPrisoned, led by Kerry Washington and Delroy Lindo, returns for an eight-episode second season. The earnest comedy about a family trying to reconnect after Edwin (Lindo) is released from jail after 17 years successfully charts topics like the aftermath of mass incarceration and intergenerational trauma. Season two also stars Faly Rakotohavana, Marque Richardson, Brenda Strong, Jee Young Han, and John Stamos. You can read The A.V. Club’s review here.

Cobra Kai never dies, as the characters keep saying, except the show itself marks the beginning of the end. The sixth and final season is annoyingly split into three parts so don’t expect the finale until 2025, but five new episodes drop on Thursday. Johnny Lawrence (William Zabka) and Daniel LaRusso (Ralph Macchio) team up their dojos to fight a common enemy. Look for The A.V. Club’s review this week.

Hidden gems

Simone Biles: Rising (Netflix, Wednesday, 3:01 a.m.)

Directed by Katie Walsh, the sports docuseries Simone Biles: Rising charts Biles’ return to the 2024 Olympics in Paris after she dropped out of the 2020 Tokyo games to take a mental health break. Part one premieres on July 17, but TBD on when part two drops.

Ross Kaufman directs Wild, Wild Space, which dissects the high-stakes modern space race through the lens of, what else, capitalism. Specifically, the series looks at rocket and satellite companies like Astra Space, Rocket Lab, and Planet Labs (and their founders) as they spend billions to conquer outer space.

Harley Quinn’s nicest superhero gets a spin-off in Kite Man: Hell Yeah! Matt Oberg voices Charles Brown, a.k.a. Kite Man, who almost married Ivy (Lake Bell) in the original series. Now he’s got a new romantic partner in Lina Snart, a.k.a. Golden Glider (Stephanie Hsu). They also work together to take down villains and run a shady bar that rivals the Legion of Doom. Kaley Cuoco returns as Harley in a guest role, while other voice actors include James Adomian as Bane, Lance Reddick as Lex Luthor, Janelle James as Queen of Fables, Jonathan Banks as Noonan, and Natasia Demetriou as Malice. Look for The A.V. Club’s review this week.

More good stuff

Emperor Of Ocean Park (MGM+, Sunday, 10 p.m.)

Based on Stephen L. Carter’s novel, the thriller Emperor Of Ocean Park centers on the law professor Talcott Garland (Grantham Coleman). His quiet Martha’s Vineyard life shatters when his dad, who was a failed Black nominee to the Supreme Court, dies mysteriously. A journalist’s investigation into the case reveals some long-buried secrets. Forest Whitaker, Tiffany Mack, Henry Simmons, and Bryan Greenberg co-star.

Those About To Die drops Anthony Hopkins and Game Of Thrones’ Iwan Rheon in ancient Rome. The 10-episode series, based on Daniel P. Mannix’s book, unpacks the spectacle-driven and corrupt world of gladiator fighting. The cast includes Jojo Macari, Gabriella Pession, Dimitri Leonidas, and Tom Hughes. The A.V. Club’s review will be up this week.

Can’t miss recaps

House Of The Dragon (HBO, Sunday, 9 p.m.)

The Boys (Prime Video, Thursday, 12:01 a.m., season two finale)

Arriving now

Marvel’s Hit-Monkey (Hulu, Monday, 12:01 a.m., season two)

Homicide: Los Angeles (Netflix, Tuesday, 3:01 a.m., season two)

Ending soon

All American (The CW, Monday, 9 p.m., season six finale)

Star Wars: The Acolyte (Disney+, Wednesday, 3:01 a.m., season one finale)