"Rectify" is this the best new drama of the Season.

Rectify, created by Ray McKinnon, is exactly the type of show that would have once aired on AMC. (Ironically enough, it was originally developed for the channel.) It’s a breathtaking work of immense beauty and a thought-provoking meditation on the nature of crime and punishment, of identity and solitude, of guilt and absolution. It is, quite simply, the best new show of 2013.

Sentenced to die for the rape and murder of a 15-year-old girl, Daniel Holden (Aden Young) is released from prison after 19 years, when his original sentence is vacated, due to new DNA evidence that was overlooked at the time of his original trial. Thanks to the persistence of his headstrong sister, Amantha (a perfectly flinty Abigail Spencer), and his lawyer, Jon Stern (Luke Kirby), Daniel returns home to his mother (True Blood’s J. Smith-Cameron) and to a world he hasn’t seen since he was a teenager. In the small town of Paulie, Georgia, Daniel must rediscover a life forgotten and distant, while outside forces look to demonize him and swing the executioner’s axe once more.

After a two-decade stint on death row, Daniel emerges to a world that he does not recognize, and which largely sees him as a figure of scorn and hatred or, at the very least, curiosity and suspicion. Young delivers a dazzling performance as Daniel, a man metaphorically untethered from time and space. Daniel often feels as though he is still in high school, rather than a man in his late 30s;

Daniel’s release from prison creates ripples throughout Paulie, and his presence has unforeseen consequences for all of his family’s members.

The twin overarching plots—Did Daniel commit this heinous crime and, if not, who did? How does Daniel readjust to life outside prison?—are merely a gateway for exploring a host of substantive issues, ranging from morality and religious belief to issues of connection and isolation.

Rectify deftly walks a wire-thin tightrope when it comes to Daniel’s guilt or innocence. What happened the night of Hannah’s murder remains a tantalizing mystery, one with clues that will sprinkled throughout the six episodes. While Daniel attempts to come to terms with his hard-earned freedom, others—including a venal state senator (Michael O'Neill) and a lazy sheriff (J.D. Evermore)—look to pin the blame for Hannah’s rape and murder back on him, while some in this sleepy town might prefer to take their own brand of justice against Daniel.