Ray Liotta and Jennifer Lopez star in "Shades of Blue"

Just when you think prime time has reached its saturation point with one genre or another, the networks somehow manage to squeeze in another family sitcom, another medical drama, another envelope-pushing animated comedy -- you get the picture.

How about another police procedural? A show doesn't have much hope of succeeding unless it has that extra something to make it stand out. For "Shades of Blue," that something is some big names and a leading lady who’s had a finger in just about every pie in the entertainment biz. Additionally, the characters are refreshingly flawed, unlike the untarnished cops and detectives that populate many police dramas. The series premiered earlier this month, and a new episode airs Thursday, Jan. 28, on NBC.

The overarching concept of "Shades of Blue" is that of good people doing bad things -- and, more specifically, good cops doing bad things. In short, they’re human -- and that’s part of what series star Jennifer Lopez ("The Wedding Planner," 2001) believes will really appeal to audiences.

"It really deals with the human condition and how we navigate through every single moment in our life," she said in an interview with Flicks and the City.

The triple threat stars in "Shades of Blue" as NYPD Det. Harlee Santos, a single mother of a musically talented teenage daughter, who is dealing with financial hardships.

When Santos is offered a bribe, she takes it, only to discover that she’s been set up by the FBI’s anti-corruption task force in an effort to flush out untoward activity within the NYPD. She is picked up and made brutally aware that the FBI is in a position to destroy not just her life, but her daughter’s as well. If, however, she turns informant, she’ll be granted full immunity.

Her position is made even tougher by the fact that Santos’s coworkers are her family. Thus, she’s forced to choose between the good of her surrogate family and the good of her actual family -- her daughter, Cristina (Sarah Jeffery, "Rogue").

In the end, Santos chooses Cristina. The show follows her ongoing betrayal of the people she loves and sees every day, and the effect it has on both her and them. Despite Santos turning rat, though, Lopez thinks we’ll be able to root for her character, who is relatable because of, rather than despite, her less-than-perfect treatment of others.

"At the end of the day, we’re all doing the best we can. We all make messed-up choices sometimes, thinking in the long run it’s gonna turn out OK," she said in the same interview. "The whole series is about shades of what’s right and wrong, and the choices that we make."

Heading up the cast alongside Lopez is another mega-star, Ray Liotta. Like his co-star, the Emmy winner is best known for his big-screen work, having made a name for himself with iconic roles in "Field of Dreams" (1989) and "Goodfellas" (1990) before going on to enjoy a long and illustrious film career. In "Shades of Blue," he plays Lieut. Matt Wozniak, the patriarch of the tight-knit unit who, upon discovering there’s a rat amongst their numbers, begins an all-consuming hunt for the informant who’s right under his nose.

Ray Liotta and Jennifer Lopez star in "Shades of Blue"

As Det. Tess Nazario, Emmy winner Drea de Matteo steps into unfamiliar territory as a cop -- she's best known for playing characters who live life on the other side of the law, such as her roles in "The Sopranos," "Desperate Housewives" and "Sons of Anarchy." She’s held her own on the big screen as well, appearing in more than two dozen films, including "Swordfish" (2001), "Deuces Wild" (2002) and "Assault on Precinct 13" (2005).

Like her co-stars, the actress was drawn to "Shades of Blue" because it had a different feel to it from your average procedural.

"We’ve seen a million procedurals, I guess no one needs another one," she said in a Flicks and the City interview. "So now we have sort of the subculture of what really goes on in the underbellies of the cop world, and, God knows, it’s very relevant right now in the press."

The actress went on to praise the script and, of course, Lopez and Liotta, who alone would be worth getting invested in the show. Indeed, it was only when NBC execs cajoled Lopez into taking the lead role that they picked up the show for a 13-episode run, knowing what a draw she’d be and how much she’d bring to the table.

Rounding off the main cast are "The Hunger Games" (2012) alum Dayo Okeniyi as Michael Loman, a newbie to the unit, and Vincent Laresca ("24") as Carlos Espada, the team’s moral compass.

Star power alone may not be enough to get a series off the ground, but by all accounts, "Shades of Blue" has that and more, with a solid script and story to back up its impressive cast. Decide for yourself when a new episode airs Thursday, Jan. 28, on NBC.