''Saving Grace'' is an American

crime drama Crime films, in the broadest sense, is a film genre inspired by and analogous to the crime fiction literary genre. Films of this genre generally involve various aspects of crime and its detection. Stylistically, the genre may overlap and combin ...

television series which aired on

TNT Trinitrotoluene (), more commonly known as TNT, more specifically 2,4,6-trinitrotoluene, and by its preferred IUPAC name 2-methyl-1,3,5-trinitrobenzene, is a chemical compound with the formula C6H2(NO2)3CH3. TNT is occasionally used as a reagen ...

from July 23, 2007, to June 21, 2010. The show stars

Holly Hunter Holly Patricia Hunter (born March 20, 1958) is an American actress. For her performance as Ada McGrath in the 1993 drama film '' The Piano'', Hunter won the Academy Award for Best Actress. She earned three additional Academy Award nominations for ...

as well as Leon Rippy,

Kenny Johnson Kenneth Allen Johnson (born July 13, 1963) is an American actor, producer, and model. He is known for his roles as Detective Curtis Lemansky in ''The Shield'', Butch "Burner" Barnes in '' Pensacola: Wings of Gold'', Detective Ham Dewey in '' Sa ...

Laura San Giacomo Laura San Giacomo (born November 14, 1962) is an American actress. She played Cynthia in the film ''Sex, Lies, and Videotape'' (1989) for which she won the Independent Spirit Award for Best Supporting Female, Kit De Luca in the film ''Pretty Woman ...

Bailey Chase Bailey Chase Luetgert (born May 1, 1972) is an American stage and television actor. Chase is known for his role as Cory Snyder in '' Walk. Ride. Rodeo.'', as Butch Ada in the television series '' Saving Grace'', as Graham Miller in ''Buffy the V ...

, Bokeem Woodbine, Gregory Norman Cruz and Yaani King. It is set in

Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...

—including numerous shots of local buildings and landmarks (such as the

Oklahoma City National Memorial The Oklahoma City National Memorial is a memorial in the United States that honors the victims, survivors, rescuers, and all who were affected by the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995. The memorial is located in downtown Oklahoma City on th ...

and the downtown skyline)—while much of the show was filmed in

Vancouver Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the ...

and

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. The theme song for the show was written and performed by American

rapper Rapping (also rhyming, spitting, emceeing or MCing) is a musical form of vocal delivery that incorporates "rhyme, rhythmic speech, and street vernacular". It is performed or chanted, usually over a backing beat or musical accompaniment. The ...

- musician Everlast. The series is rated

TV-MA The TV Parental Guidelines are a television content rating system in the United States that was first proposed on December 19, 1996, by the United States Congress, the television industry and the Federal Communications Commission, federal commun ...

in the United States for

language Language is a structured system of communication. The structure of a language is its grammar and the free components are its vocabulary. Languages are the primary means by which humans communicate, and may be conveyed through a variety of ...

, sexuality, and

violence Violence is the use of physical force so as to injure, abuse, damage, or destroy. Other definitions are also used, such as the World Health Organization's definition of violence as "the intentional use of physical force or power, threatened ...

Plot

The plot focuses on Grace Hanadarko (

), a heavy drinking and

promiscuous Promiscuity is the practice of engaging in sexual activity frequently with different partners or being indiscriminate in the choice of sexual partners. The term can carry a moral judgment. A common example of behavior viewed as promiscuous by ma ...

detective. In the series opener, Grace meets up with her "last-chance"

angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles inclu ...

when, after a night of drinking, she runs down and kills a pedestrian with her Porsche. In desperation, she calls out for God's help; and a scruffy, tobacco-spitting man, who calls himself Earl ( Leon Rippy), appears. Unfolding his wings to reveal his divine origins, Earl tells her that she is headed for Hell and asks if she is ready to turn her life over to

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

. When he finally disappears, the person she struck is also gone and it is as if the accident never happened. The only evidence left is a small amount of the victim's blood on her blouse, which she takes to her best friend, forensic science expert Rhetta Rodriguez (

), to analyze. With Rhetta's help, Grace discovers that the victim in her accident is actually a man awaiting execution on death row, Leon Cooley ( Bokeem Woodbine). When she visits Cooley in prison, he reveals that he has also had encounters with Earl. Passionate in her job, Grace investigates homicides and other major crimes with the other detectives in her squad, including Ham Dewey (

), Butch Ada (

), Bobby Stillwater (Gregory Cruz), and Captain Kate Perry (

Lorraine Toussaint Lorraine Toussaint () is a Trinidadian-American actress. She is the recipient of various accolades, including a Black Reel Award, a Critics' Choice Television Award and a Screen Actors Guild Award. Toussaint began her career in theatre before ...

). Off the job, Grace drinks heavily, engages in numerous

one-night stand A one-night stand or one-night sex is a single sexual encounter in which there is an expectation that there shall be no further relations between the sexual participants. It draws its name from the common practice of a one-night stand, a single ...

s and casual encounters with men, and is having an affair with her married police partner, Ham. Aside from her faults, Grace is an extraordinarily loving and generous person to those around her. In particular, she loves her young nephew, Clay (

Dylan Minnette Dylan Christopher Minnette (born December 29, 1996) is an American actor, musician and singer. He is known for his role as Clay Jensen in the Netflix drama series '' 13 Reasons Why''. He has made guest appearances in several television series, s ...

), and devotes a great deal of time to him. Earl appears to Grace throughout the series, hoping she'll turn away from her more self-destructive tendencies and seek God's help. ''Saving Grace'' uses Grace's story to discuss the topic of

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as " belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people ofte ...

and how difficult faith can be in such an imperfect world.

Oklahoma City

Series creator Nancy Miller grew up in

, and as a result ''Saving Grace'' includes many references to Oklahoma City and the state of Oklahoma. For instance, many of the characters' last names are the names of Oklahoma towns: Hanadarko is derived from

Anadarko, Oklahoma Anadarko is a city in Caddo County, Oklahoma, United States. The city is fifty miles southwest of Oklahoma City. The population was 5,745 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Caddo County. History Anadarko got its name when its post of ...

; also Clay Norman, Ham Dewey, Butch Ada, Bobby Stillwater, and Captain Perry all have last names taken from Oklahoma towns and cities. The 1995 bombing of Oklahoma City's

Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States federal government complex located at 200 N.W. 5th Street in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. On April 19, 1995, at 9:02 a.m. the building was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing ...

and its aftermath have been frequently incorporated into the plot and character development of the series. In the show, Grace's sister, who was also Clay's mother, died in the bombing. In addition, local Oklahoma City eating establishment Johnnies Charcoal Broiler is frequently incorporated. In an October 2007 trip to Oklahoma City by the cast, writers and producers, Oklahoma City Mayor

Mick Cornett Michael Earl Cornett Sr. (born July 16, 1958) is an American politician and former television personality who served as the 35th mayor of Oklahoma City, from 2005 until 2018. A member of the Republican Party, he was only the fourth mayor in Ok ...

presented Miller and Hunter with

Keys to the City The Freedom of the City (or Borough in some parts of the UK) is an honour bestowed by a municipality upon a valued member of the community, or upon a visiting celebrity or dignitary. Arising from the medieval practice of granting respected ...

Episodes

Cast and characters

as Grace Hanadarko * Leon Rippy as Earl *

as Hamilton "Ham" Dewey *

as Rhetta Rodriguez *

as Butch Ada *Gregory Norman Cruz as Bobby Stillwater *

as Captain Kate Perry *

as Clay Norman * Bokeem Woodbine as Leon Cooley (seasons 1–2; guest season 3) * Tom Irwin as Father Johnny Hanadarko *Mark L. Taylor as Henry Silver * Yaani King as Neely Lloyd (season 3)

Production

Following a 13-episode first season which ran from July 23 to December 18, 2007, ''Saving Grace'' ran for a second season of 14 episodes which began on July 14, 2008, and ended on April 13, 2009. The second season was split; the first half ran in the summer of 2008, and the second half ran in the spring of 2009. The third season of ''Saving Grace'' began airing on June 16, 2009, shifting from the Monday night slot it had occupied for the first two seasons to Tuesday night. On August 13, 2009, the show's producer,

Fox Television Studios The second incarnation of Touchstone Television (formerly known as Fox 21 Television Studios) was an American television production company that is a subsidiary of Disney Media Networks' Walt Disney Television owned by The Walt Disney Company. It ...

, canceled the series, despite its high ratings, due to disappointing overseas and DVD sales. TNT had originally ordered a split 15-episode third season, with nine episodes to be aired in the summer and six to be aired in the winter of 2009. Due to the show's cancellation, the summer season ended with ten episodes (one episode, ''"What Would You Do?"'', slated for season 2, was delayed until season 3, adding one to the nine originally ordered for the summer), and in March 2010 TNT began airing what were advertised as the final episodes. These were the six remaining episodes of the season, with three new episodes added to give the series closure. The final episode of ''Saving Grace'' aired on June 21, 2010.

DVD releases

The 19 episodes that aired June–August 2009 and March–June 2010 were released collectively as a third and final season

International broadcasts

UK: Season 1 began on More4 on Monday 29 August 2009 at 11:00 P.M. Season 2 began after a considerable gap on Thursday 26 January 2012 at 10:35 P.M. Portugal: Season 1 and 2 already have been broadcast on

Fox Life Fox Life is an international pay television network, launched by the Fox Networks Group in 2004. The network has been discontinued in several markets over time, except for the Middle East, Bulgaria, Portugal, the Balkans, India and Greece. The ...

. *Season 1 - Thursday at 9:00 P.M. *Season 2 - Monday at 9:50 P.M. The third season is currently airing on

Fox Next Fox:Next was a television channel operated by Fox International Channels in Portugal. Its programming was focused on television series and movies. The channel was launched in Portugal on April 14, 2008, as part of the meo package line-up. It was ...

which is also rerunning the previous two seasons. In Australia, Season 1 has just begun airing on 9 August 2011 on Channel 10 at midnight most week nights. Japan: Season 1 began on 14 December 2008. Season 2 began on 11 December 2009. In Quebec, Canada, the series began airing in French on March 5, 2009, on Thursday nights at 9:00 P.M. On March 16, 2010, when season two of the series began, it had its timeslot changed to Tuesday nights at 9:00 P.M. replacing ''

Bones A bone is a rigid organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red and white blood cells, store minerals, provide structure and support for the body, a ...

'' after its fourth season concluded. The channel decided to air the 10 episodes of the final season following the second season.

Reception

Critical reception

*''

The New York Post The ''New York Post'' (''NY Post'') is a conservative daily tabloid newspaper published in New York City. The ''Post'' also operates NYPost.com, the celebrity gossip site PageSix.com, and the entertainment site Decider.com. It was established ...

''; Reviewed by: Adam Buckman; Grade: 100; Both ''

The Closer ''The Closer'' is an American television police procedural starring Kyra Sedgwick as Brenda Leigh Johnson, a Los Angeles Police Department deputy chief. A CIA-trained interrogator originally from Atlanta, Georgia, Brenda has a reputation as a c ...

'' and Saving Grace are at the top of their games in tonight's premiere episodes. *'' New York Daily News''; Reviewed by: David Hinckley; Grade: 80; This will be good news to people who enjoy watching train wrecks in which the engineer accelerates as the precipice nears, which is Grace's signature move.

U.S. ratings

For calendar-year 2008 on a first-run basis, the series garnered 1.59 million adults in the 18-49 demo.

Awards and nominations

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Saving Grace (Tv Series) 2007 American television series debuts 2010 American television series endings 2000s American crime drama television series 2000s American mystery television series 2000s American police procedural television series 2010s American crime drama television series 2010s American mystery television series 2010s American police procedural television series American fantasy drama television series Angels in television English-language television shows Religious drama television series Television series by 20th Century Fox Television Television shows filmed in Vancouver Television shows set in Oklahoma TNT (American TV network) original programming