What’s on TV this week: Shark Week and Macy’s Firework Show

For those who still have cable subscriptions, here is a selection of cable and network TV shows, movies, and specials airing this week, July 1 through 6. Details and times are subject to change.

Monday

BASKETBALL WOMEN 8:00pm on VH1. This show about the women (And ex-wives And girlfriends) of NBA players, is back for the second half of Season 11. In this world, your partner’s success determines your power within the group and that continues to play out as the show progresses. Luckily, these ladies are there to cause drama, because with most of the “Real Housewives” franchises in between seasons, things have been a little too quiet.

Tuesday

DISCO: SOUNDTRACK OF A REVOLUTION 9pm on PBS (check local listings). This three-part documentary series uses several songs from the disco era to highlight the music genre’s impact on its listeners. The first episode focuses on “Stayin’ Alive” with conversations about how Middle America responded to the strange and hedonistic themes of the genre.

HARD KNOCKS: OUTSIDE SEASON 9pm on HBO. Since 2001, the series has given us behind-the-scenes moments from over two dozen teams throughout the NFL season. This new iteration instead follows one team: this year, it’s the New York Giants, as the team prepares for its 100th season.

Wednesday

HOPE IN THE WATER 9:00 p.m. on PBS (check local programming guide). Documentaries like “Seaspiracy” and “A Plastic Ocean” have warned us about the dangers of fishing and the consequences of ignoring climate change. This documentary series is a little more hopeful because it outlines a solution: sustainable aquaculture, a method of growing and harvesting seafood for people to eat while protecting fragile ocean ecosystems.

Thursday

CONMEBOL COPA AMERICA: QUARTER-FINALS 8pm on Fox. Have you seen people proudly wearing soccer jerseys around town? That’s because Copa América, an annual tournament organized by the South American Football Confederation Conmebol, is held at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. Argentina are currently the reigning champions, and if their recent win over Chile is any indication, they could win again.

MACY’S 4TH OF JULY FIREWORKS 8pm on NBC. The best part of Independence Day is the massive fireworks displays (unless you’re a pet parent). For the first time in years, Macy’s is staging a display from barges on the Hudson River, bringing the show to the West Side of Manhattan and, thanks to NBC, around the world. Lainey Wilson, Luis Fonsi, and The War and Treaty are among the artists set to perform alongside the show.

Friday

DOWN IN THE VALLEY 9pm on Starz. Inspired by the Starz show “P-Valley,” this new documentary series takes viewers into and around the Deep South. “P-Valley”’s Nicco Annan serves as host and audience surrogate as he experiences rap workshops, strip clubs, spiritual rituals and more.

Saturday

CLOSE ENCOUNTERS OF THE THIRD KIND (1977) 8 p.m. on TCM. In Steven Spielberg’s film, Roy Neary (Richard Dreyfuss), an Indiana man who has an encounter with an unidentified flying object, decides to dedicate his entire life to finding answers. “If we are indeed not alone, it would be nice to believe that the creatures who will one day visit us are of the order Mr. Spielberg has imagined—with, I might add, a certain amount of courage and a completely straight face,” Vincent Canby wrote in his review for The New York Times.

THE DAY THE EARTH STOPPED (1951) 10:30pm on TCM. The fun doesn’t stop there! Let’s go back in time once more, to this 1950s film in which Klaatu (Michael Rennie), an alien, comes to Earth to tell humans — including the President of the United States — that everyone must live peacefully or risk seeing their planet destroyed. “It is, of course, reassuring to learn that our planetary neighbors are far wiser and more peaceable than we are,” wrote Bosley Crowther in his review in the Times.

Sunday

SHARK WEEK from 8pm on Discovery. If aliens aren’t threatening enough for you, it’s been a scary month in the news for all things shark. A 20-year-old tourist in Hawaii was possibly bitten by a shark while swimming, and surfer and actor Tamayo Perry was killed by a shark while surfing. If fear motivates you to learn more about the ocean, Discovery’s annual Shark Week comes at the perfect time. Actor John Cena will be hosting, and there will be about three different shark-related programs each day of the week.