On the heels of the groundbreaking and ratings-shattering series The Closer, TNT presents another terrific series with a great, complex, uncompromising female character at its core. In Saving Grace, Oscar- and Emmy-winning actress Holly Hunter embodies Grace Hanadarko as if this is the role she's been waiting all her life to play.

Right from the first moment in the pilot, we know this isn't anything we've seen before. Grace is having sex more graphically than you'll see on any network channel. Her carefully shot nudity, her crude language and her hunt for her missing gun under discarded clothing tell us we're not in Kansas anymore. In fact, we're in Oklahoma City, and the people in Saving Grace are still reeling from the devastating terrorist attack that killed 168 people and destroyed the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in 1995.

Grace has more than one reason to hate God. So when Earl shows up, it's easy to see that despite overwhelming evidence that the angel is really divine, Grace isn't ready to be won over instantly.

Creator Nancy Miller's script introduces us to Grace, starting off with all her faults and dysfunctions before letting us in on her saving graces. Grace is funny, sexy, vulgar, mean and kind, all wrapped up in one small package. Hunter embraces Grace's faults and embeds her unique likability into the character.

And while Hunter is a revelation, this well-cast series has an equally terrific performance by Leon Rippy as Earl. He's not like any angel we've ever seen, and it's terrific to see Rippy, who too often gets cast as a bad guy, in a role he also seems fated to play. The other standout is Laura San Giacomo as Rhetta, a character who does believe in God but doesn't judge Grace.

It's clear that Earl's job of saving Grace won't be an easy one, and that makes this series all the more interesting. Part of Grace wants to be saved, part of her is mad at God, and part of her just doesn't think it's worth all the effort to have faith. And that's what makes Grace's messy life so familiar. We understand her faults because there's a part of Grace in most of us.