Saving Grace: A Language Of Angels

SEASON 1 FINALE, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 17TH @ 10PM ON TNT

It finally happened; the writer's realized they sucked for most of the season and decided to write a good episode. This is what I was expecting from the show all year but didn't see. It had a solid foundation with a great back story and some suspense added in. Plus we actually got to see small bit of a purpose in the show other than to watch Grace parade around screwing every guy she meets. Although I do believe even this episode needs some work. The fact that Grace was connected to the murderer (she was attacked by him 12 years earlier) was great and surprising but it felt a bit rushed. It would have been better if they had stretched the storyline to more than one episode and possibly more than one murder. That definitely would have made the anticipation and suspense that much greater. Overall though the writers and producers did a much better job with the season finale and last week's episode than they did earlier in the season.

One beef with this episode though is that they showed Holly Hunter's ass entirely too many times. Once, maybe twice, would have been enough to get the point across that she has some serious problems and is spiraling downwards; that her random sex acts with random people just need to stop. Instead, someone at this show thought it was necessary to show her ass no less than 10 times. This really wasn't necessary and demeaned the purpose of the opening scenes. It was funny that her one night stand signed his name on her ass with her lipstick and even funnier when Earl saw it.

Like Earl said, it was interesting to see Grace lecture someone else and being bad. When she lectured her nephew by handcuffing him to the table and interrogating him like a common criminal, I think she realized some things about herself as well. Although Grace never likes to follow through after her self-realizations. I think her nephew needs a mother-figure and at the same time Grace needs to be that mother-figure to keep her grounded. Eventually, this might be part of what saves her.

I was a bit surprised that the season finale didn't go into the triangle between Grace, Ham, and Butch. This is growing into a big story and should have been addressed. To an extent the Grace-Ham relationship got some time when Ham was clearly jealous and hurt that he caught Grace after she had sex with another guy. Grace was right when she called him out though; that Ham only came over for quickie before going to the crime scene and that he is married so she owes him no explanations. Ham so easily forgets that he's married and pretends like he can act as if he has a legitimate relationship with Grace. The guy needs to chill and either leave his wife or stop cheating. And if Grace ever has a chance of being saved she needs to stop having an affair with a married man.

The only cliffhanger for next season (if you can even call it that) is Gretta's discovery that the item's Earl leaves behind may actually be some sort of code or language speaking to Grace and Leon. Whether this is true and what it may say should be a big part of the second season.

Until then, enjoy the prime time shows starting up again next week and I'll post information on season 2 when it comes out.

Saving Grace: Everything's Got A Shelf Life

SEASON 1 ORIGINAL EPISODES, MONDAYS @ 10PM ON TNT

This week's episode was far and away the best of the season. Finally the writer's got the hint that we need some more compelling stories to follow and less of Grace half naked on top of a new guy.

Last week I mentioned that the show lacked a compelling storyline linking each episode to each other. While it still lacks an overall storyline (other than the basic premise of Grace needing to be saved) the show is far better when the cops are on a case that is thrilling and interesting. Last week they tracked down a killer soldier and touched on issues connected to the War in Iraq. This week Grace and the other officers tried taking down a drug dealer and his crew. The opening got the episode off on the right foot as we watched Grace, her fellow detectives, and the Swat Team swarm the home of the suspected drug dealer. It was intense, exciting, and exactly what this show should be all about.

The truth is that this show is MUCH better when the focus is NOT on the wildness of Grace. Her character's tendencies are certainly compelling and the core of the shows purpose but they're more poignant when they aren't the only thing we're watching. In fact, Grace is much more likable when we watch her doing her job and doing it well with interjections of her wild personality. As I watched Grace handle the drug dealer and his crew in a few face-to-face confrontations I was impressed by how smart and crafty she can be. Then when her wild side came out I didn't mind it as much as I did when I had to watch her drunk and having sex for half the episode. It was actually nice to see Grace working out when she couldn't sleep in the beginning of the episode rather than downing a 12 pack of MGD.

It was funny when each of her partner's fought over who would stay the night with her when she passed out on her couch the night after being shot in the raid. Obviously we know why Butch and Ham wanted to stay but I was a little surprised that Bobby wanted to say also. I guess she has a way about her that gets all these guys wrapped around her finger. She needs to open up to Butch though. He made her a great breakfast after staying the night when he didn't really have to and all she did was tell him that she usually skips breakfast. She totally dissed his attempts to get closer with her. She's much better off with Butch than she is with Ham, not only because Ham's married but Butch just seems to be a bit more together than Ham. Anyway, this group affection for Grace is becoming a very interesting dynamic on the show. Watch out though, Ham and Butch will likely come to blows over her at some point; how can it not.

A great thing in this episode was that the outcome wasn't as telegraphed as some of the events last week. I mentioned that in my review last week that the writer's tend to telegraph outcome's and it hurt the show. They did show flashes of intelligence in the past (i.e. when Grace's boss was shot in the head by his own son without any foreshadowing in episode #2) and in this episode they showed they could do it all the time. I never saw the Grandma as the drug dealer. Maybe I'm naive but I just didn't see the Grandma being the city's crack lord.

Did anyone else think Grace looked much better all cleaned up at the end of the episode? It was refreshing to see a different side of her. Although in the uniform she looks ridiculously tiny.

See you all next week for the Season 1 Finale. If this week is any indication we can expect even better writing in the last episode of the season...

Saving Grace: Yeehaw, Geepaw

SEASON 1 ORIGINAL EPISODES, MONDAY'S @ 10PM ON TNT

What do I have to say about Saving Grace? Well, to start I have to admit I expected a lot more from the show. Although it has the general theme of Grace being saved by her Angel “Earl”, there is no consistent theme running through every episode for viewers to get attached to. Maybe if there were some sort of particular issue that Grace had to work on or an event she had to work through then alright. But just the general idea that she’s on the wrong track and needs to turn her life around doesn’t really mean anything to me unless I have something to see her work on. That’s the basic element lacking in this show.

At times I have to admit that I love Grace and other times I can’t stand her. Honestly, do we really need to see her having raunchy sex with random and non-random guys in EVERY episode? Granted it’s her characters nature but it’s getting old and a bit boring. Holly Hunter does bring an interesting perspective to the character and a certain charm but I really can’t decide yet if I love her or hate her. Only time will tell I guess.

This episode was definitely one of the better written episodes this season though. We got a great secondary story and a great primary story. The secondary story dealt with Grace and her fellow officers discovering a torched body in the middle of a deserted area buried in a shallow grave. We find out the body is that of a soldier who just returned home from Iraq. This was a great idea on the part of the writers because before this the cases Grace followed were not all that interesting. But the overtones of “should we or should we not have gone to Iraq,” what soldiers are like after years of war, and how they’re received at home, all played a part in this story and made for a great and thought provoking episode. Grace and the boys eventually figure out that it was the father of the dead soldier’s best friend who killed him because he blamed him for his son enlisting and eventually getting killed by a roadside bomb in Iraq. Decent storyline all around…

The primary story dealt with Grace’s family relationship’s and in particular those with her sister and her grandfather (“Geepaw”). As it turns out Geepaw has Alzheimer’s and it’s only getting worse. It’s just an awful disease and no one deserves it; Grace agrees but even Earl can’t get her to yell and complain to God about it. Grace is utterly devastated about the condition of her grandfather and for the first time you can really see her struggling with the choices she’s made and her belief’s on religion and God. It was nice to see things starting to progress a bit in touching upon the purpose of the show.

The epitome of what’s lacking in this show occurred towards the end of the episode. It was unbelievably telegraphed that Grace would ignore her family and take her grandfather horseback riding despite his deteriorating condition, leading to his fall off the horse and significant injuries. The writers just aren’t working up to par and they play stupid games with us. Shock value does not equal good writing and its terribly transparent how much the writing has been lacking all season.

The last thing I’d like to mention is Grace’s relationship’s with Ham and Butch. I sort of felt all season that Grace’s character has much more chemistry with Butch than Ham. I just don’t see the relationship with Ham at all. Most times he just looks like a bumbling doofus while Holly Hunter and Bailey Chase (“Butch”) have a deep chemistry that just works. So what happens? Butch and Grace hook up again – they had a relationship prior to the time when the show takes place. Grace needs to get rid of Ham and stick with Butch; but I have to give it to Butch, he was 100% right when he said “she’s dangerous.” You can totally get burned by Grace because half the time she doesn’t even know what she’s doing.

Anyway, we have two episodes in the first season. The writer’s better pick up the quality or I don’t know if I’ll be able to watch past this season…