Summer is a time for cutting-edge TV, when cable channels trot out daring programming that wouldn’t fly on the stodgy networks. After all, it’s possible for them to capture respectable ratings against the dregs and the reruns on broadcast channels.

Searching for something compatible to run after its hit series “The Closer,” TNT has turned to “Heartland.”

However, this medical drama by David Hollander (“The Guardian”) seems a little staid when compared to the frantic pace and fervent coupling of “Grey’s Anatomy” and, yes, even “ER.”

Set at St. Jude’s Transplant Center in Pittsburgh, “Heartland” is about the world of organ-transplant surgery.

What this means visually is a lot of sitting around waiting as the potential recipient hangs on and the possible donor slowly dies. (We need a code, stat!)

At the center of “Heartland” is surgeon Nathaniel Grant (Treat Williams, “Everwood”). Nathaniel is a workaholic surgical pioneer whose professional life is a mess.

His ex-wife, Kate Armstrong (Kari Matchett, “Invasion”), is the organ-donor coordinator for the local organ center, so they are working together on a daily basis. They struggle with co-parenting their teenage daughter Thea (Gage Golightly), who plays one against the other. His current girlfriend, Jessica (Morena Baccarin, “Firefly”), works on his staff, so there’s some opportunity for dramatic tension.

Outside of that, there’s a lot of dialogue such as “Mr. So-and-So is on top of the list for a liver. Has that gangbanger’s grandmother signed off yet?”

Frankly, for its many flaws, last summer’s TNT drama “Saved” at least gave its characters “issues” with which to deal. “Heartland” could use a couple donations itself: more heart and a little soul.