It's not "adult Doctor Who", it's "juvenile Whedon-esque nonsense".
It wishes it were Whedon-esque. I don't mind Torchwood, since we're not going to get 26 episodes of Doctor Who every year, at least its something to watch (and bitch about) but it doesn't get anywhere near the heights of its parent show. I'm not sure its a "popular" scifi show, though, is it? I guess the ratings are good in the uk...