Can It Take Teen Fare to ‘Higher Ground’?

First things first: Joe Lando, star and co-executive producer of the new Friday night Fox teen series “Higher Ground,” has cropped to a fare-thee-well the flowing locks he sported as 19th century hunk Sully on “Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman.” He isn’t wearing those buckskins, either.

Lando’s new ear-baring ‘do and revealing sleeveless T’s give him a buff and edgy look as Peter, a post-rehab former Wall Street high-flier climbing back from the substance-abuse skids as headmaster at a tough-love, wilderness high school for “at-risk” teenagers.

This one-hour original prime-time dramatic series from the Fox Family Channel, its first, is also helmed by, among others, executive producers Michael Braverman (creator of ABC’s “Life Goes On”) and “Baywatch” co-creator Douglas Schwartz. If anything of those shows’ sensibilities can be said to be reflected here it’s an earnest approach to teens’ disturbing real-life problems mixed with Lando’s macho appeal, hyper-aware teen sexuality and glossy, eye-catching young stars. It also has the requisite hip cynicism and brooding angst of so many teen shows on TV.

In the first episode, directed by David Straiton and written by Braverman, Peter learns that the progressive school, Mt. Horizon, a labor of love for its founder Frank (Jim Byrnes), is facing foreclosure. Meanwhile, a group of its students, with varying psychological and substance abuse problems, are on a challenging mountain trek, and a deeply troubled new student, Scott (Hayden Christensen), arrives. He’s forcibly brought by his father, a school counselor, and his father’s sexy young “trophy wife.”

Scott’s father hopes that the school will stop his ex-football star son’s seemingly inexplicable slide into failing grades, drug use and disrespect.

This continuing story line, with its intimations of Scott’s secret seduction as a young teenager by his father’s wife, is fraught with exploitative potential. Unlike the leering approach similar shows have taken, “Higher Ground” handles it with promising sensitivity. The consequences of the seduction for Scott--anger, confusion, grief and guilt--seem to be real-world consequences.

If the series can maintain that integrity, and if the other characters’ problems are explored with the same spark of truth, it may transcend its predictability--and turn out to be aptly named.

* “Higher Ground,” Fox Family Channel, Fridays at 9 p.m. The network has rated it TV-PG (may be unsuitable for young children).