Saving Grace

Christian Science MonitorGloria Goodale

Only an actress of sublime abilities could lift this material from the downright silly to something intriguingly watchable.

VarietyBrian Lowry

The show's blessings, however, are more earthy - beginning with Hunter, who oozes anger, sexuality and irreverence, sometimes all at once. San Giacomo is perfectly cast as her friend and sounding board, and Johnson, Rippy and Woodbine all deliver solid support, with the jailhouse sequences among the show's best.

New York MagazineJohn Leonard

It relies on intelligence and resourcefulness rather than divine providence.

Pittsburgh Post-GazetteRob Owen

Writer/creator Nancy Miller ("Any Day Now") imbues the show with touches both subtle and a little overwrought but the divine "Grace" still offers stronger characters and better stories than many other summer series.

Chicago TribuneMaureen Ryan

The good news is that the smartly written "Saving Grace" is not a mess. In fact, it's one of the most distinctive new shows of the year.

SalonHeather Havrilesky

Saving Grace is my second-favorite cable drama this summer ("Mad Men" being the obvious front-runner), thanks to the excellent cast (Kenny Johnson and Laura San Giacomo, among others), and the fact that Hunter plays Grace with so much authenticity and scratchy sweetness.

San Francisco ChronicleTim Goodman

All told, this series is pleasantly unexpected, taking chances on TNT when it seemed the channel's DNA wouldn't permit that level of risk. If the writing continues to hold up, viewers could be in for a better ride than the one Hunter is already taking them on by herself.

San Jose Mercury NewsCharlie McCollum

Grace has a world of promise with thoughtful writing by Nancy Miller ("The Closer," "Any Day Now"), an intriguing take on the nature of faith and a sheer force-of-nature performance by Hunter.

Chicago Sun-TimesDoug Elfman

What we have here is a show Hunter has produced acceptably well and acted with immense, believable intensity. It's a fairly gritty TV role served with a spoonful of lightheartedness.

TV GuideMatt Roush

Self-consciously edgy while flirting with cosmic schmaltz, Saving Grace is overdone, but not run-of-the-mill.

Seattle Post-IntelligencerMelanie McFarland

This is not a shoot-the-moon, wholly unique story, but it's comforting and thoughtful.

Los Angeles TimesMary McNamara

[Hunter] captures well the worn-to-the-bone, irritable and slightly skanky buzz of a person living on too little sleep and too many medicinally applied Cokes, while infusing her character with a gentle heart and a sudden, dazzling smile. But much of the rest of the show is tediously familiar.

Flak MagazineJames Norton

The acting is strong, the music is good, and the show's not likely to leave many viewers lacking an opinion.

SlateTroy Patterson

The details of the play between Hunter and her co-stars are engrossing enough that you're glad to let the big arc sail over your head.

Entertainment WeeklyHenry Goldblatt

[The writers/producers] don't seem to have faith that their antiheroine and setting are compelling enough on their own, so they've added this superfluous otherworldly layer to keep views intrigued. [27 Jul 2007, p. 58]

Orlando SentinelHal Boedeker

Hunter is so good that she may save this erratic show.

Newark Star-LedgerAlan Sepinwall

The pieces shouldn't fit together--Earl's celestial presence with Grace's raging sex life, discussions of metaphysics with police procedural plots--but somehow they do.

New York PostLinda Stasi

The ensemble company, including the always-wonderful Laura San Giacomo, who plays her friend, never misses a beat. Too bad this series--which tries too hard--misses a stanza or two.

Hollywood ReporterBarry Garron

The main reason to watch can only be Holly Hunter.... Although she's a prisoner of the material, her performance is so good that it can distract you from this otherwise simplistic take on a complex issue.

Washington PostTom Shales

At present it suffers from a problem that predates not only television but radio and theater as well: Too many cooks, or at least too many ingredients bubbling to a busy and irritating boil.

USA TodayRobert Bianco

The real sin here is the way the show wastes Hunter, a terrific actress with a proven ability to make tough women compelling.

Wall Street JournalNancy DeWolf Smith

We're left with a heap of hocus-pocus that will offend some viewers and seem pretentious or silly to others.

LA WeeklyRobert Abele

Hunter seems to mostly flail in a show that is too unremarkable for her talents.