Back at the beginning of the year, the anime series for Nier: Automata released, and its release schedule is all over the place. In the early part of his run, it should take a gap, reportedly due to COVID-19, it went off the air for almost a few months. Back in February, it looked like that was the end of things … until his momentum stalled again in March. The current hiatus lasted well into the spring anime season and into the summer, but according to A-1 Pictures, the current hiatus is set to end in a few weeks.
In a translated version of the show’s websitethe studio thanks viewers for their patience, and promises that Nier Automata Ver 1.1a will return with new episodes on July 23. But instead of doing a weekly airing schedule like Automata previously, episodes 9-12 would only air in a two-hour block. Currently, it is only available in the Japanese dub version, and there is no mention if the English version will be released on the same day, like the previous episodes. A-1 says that more information about airing and distribution (for Japan and internationally) will come “at a later date.”
Usually when a network airs multiple episodes back to back, it’s usually because the show in question has ended, but it’s a little unclear what the deal is. It’s automata in the future. The translated wording on the website does not indicate that episodes 9-12 are intended to serve as a capital-F finale for the anime, and in fact, the website states that it will “continue to broadcast consecutively and distribution” from the date of July 23 onwards. Either the season is longer than 12 episodes, or there is another 12-episode season in the works. We will likely know more from A-1 “at a later date.”
Meanwhile, the first eight episodes of Nier Automata Ver. 1.1a can be viewed above on Crunchyroll.
[via GamesRadar]
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