It's him behind 'Doctor Who'

The same can be said for "Torchwood," though hugs on that show usually turn to more. If "The Sarah Jane Adventures" is G to "Doctor Who's" PG-13, then "Torchwood" is decidedly R. Which is not to say kids here aren't watching -- and Davies thinks the crossover is to be celebrated. "I won't even engage in it," he said of being confronted by parents offended by the open bisexuality of "Torchwood" leader Capt. Jack Harkness (played by American actor John Barrowman). "I won't apologize for it. I won't even defend it. Because a defense is an apology."

In fact, all the main characters on "Torchwood" -- not just Jack -- experience sexual-orientation as more of a notion than a fixed state and are either too forward-thinking or too busy fighting aliens to mention or even think about it. Ask Davies about infusing politics in his work and he brings up "Bob & Rose," the series he wrote for ITV in 2001 about a gay man who falls in love with a woman. Davies had intended to explore the biases the couple faced but after five pages realized anyone with prejudices was "stupid and wrong," and since their issues didn't merit analysis, he'd sooner "take the piss out of them."

"What was conceived as a very radical and brave bit of political storytelling became, to my surprise, the lightest comedy on Earth. . . . You don't get on a soapbox. There are other ways of telling the story that are subversive." He said it's the best thing he's ever written.

If Davies regrets anything about the first season of "Torchwood," it's how fractured the dynamic among the agents got, he said. "After working on 'Doctor Who' for three years, I think we were desperate to explore adult material," Davies explains. "I think we all interpreted 'adult' as backstabbing, angst, treachery and betrayal." If the second season gets any reboot, Davies said, it's that they'll get along better.

It will help that in the season opener, they bonded in hatred over Capt. John Hart, a time agent who shares a complicated and passionate history with Jack. Much has been made of "Torchwood's" similarity to "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," which gives a seemingly layered significance to the casting of James Marsters, "Buffy's" Spike, in the role of Capt. John. But Davies said the choice was just a happy coincidence. He'd given up on finding a British actor to play the role and had temporarily scrapped the character when out of the blue Marsters' agent got in touch. Still, Sunnydale-starved viewers may have felt that they got a shout-out when Marsters, in a costume half Adam Ant and half Janet Jackson circa "Rhythm Nation," ended his first scene with the line "I'm thirsty." It's a recurring guest spot.

Season 4 of "Doctor Who" airs in the spring here and in the U.S. (on Sci Fi, starting in April). Then 2009 will be what Davies calls a "gap year," with only four one-hour specials. Although the show has been commissioned for a complete season in 2010, he and Tennant are not yet signed on.

"I can't carry on like this forever," Davies said, sniffling -- his cold was acting up. He said that after this, he will likely return to drama about "the epic-ness of ordinary intimate deals of ordinary people's lives," which is what he really loves writing. "The only place for me to go here is back to six-parters or one-offs which won't have the publicity, the merchandise, the budget, the profile." He took a deep breath. "And I'm so looking forward to it."