Ahead of the curve: Weekly pop culture calendar

It's time to say goodbye to your favorite spy.

"Chuck" will come to a close with a two-hour series finale on January 27 starting at 8 p.m. ET on NBC. On his last mission for Carmichael Industries, Chuck Bartowski will attempt to save his future by teaming up with friends and family to defeat Nicholas Quinn. In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Yvonne Strahovski, who plays Sarah Walker on the show, said that "fans will be surprised where the story goes from this point on," hinting at a possible tragedy. Gasp!

Here's what else you shouldn't miss this week:

Sunday

• Catch an all-new episode of "Once Upon a Time" at 8 p.m. ET, followed by a new episode of "Desperate Housewives" at 9.
• Watch a new episode of "Downton Abbey" at 9 p.m. ET on PBS.
• Auditions continue on "American Idol," which you can watch at 10 p.m. ET on Fox.

Monday

• Amy Heckerling directed this episode of "Gossip Girl," where Blair has her bachelorette party and Serena and Dan pretend to get back together. ("GG" airs at 8 p.m. ET on The CW.)
• Teams of twins will compete on "Fear Factor" and will have to navigate through a maze in addition to other tests. Catch it at 9 p.m. ET on NBC.
• Watch a new episode of "Castle," where a reality-TV star becomes a murder suspect, at 10:01 p.m. ET on ABC.

Tuesday

• All-new episode of "White Collar" at 10 p.m. ET on USA.
• For readers: "The Flight of Gemma Hardy" by Margot Livesey, "Fairy Tale Interrupted: A Memoir of Life, Love, and Loss" by RoseMarie Terenzio, "Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking" by Susan Cain, "Taken" by Robert Crais and "Fallen in Love" by Lauren Kate come out today.
• "50/50," "Real Steel," and "Paranormal Activity 3" will be released on DVD and Blu-ray. Alfred Hitchcock's "Notorious," "Rebecca," and "Spellbound" will also be released.
• For music lovers: "Chimes of Freedom: The Songs of Bob Dylan" by various artists like Maroon 5, Miley Cyrus, K'NAAN, Raphael Saadiq and Lenny Kravitz, "Believe" by Celtic Woman, "Emotional Traffic" by Tim McGraw and the 40th anniversary edition of "L.A. Woman" by The Doors are released.

Wednesday

• Watch the pilot episode of "Touch," a drama series that follows a widower and his son, who obsesses over numbers and can predict the future, at 9 p.m. ET on Fox.
• Catch an all-new episode of "Whitney" at 8 p.m. ET followed by "Are You There, Chelsea?" at 8:30 p.m. ET on NBC.

Thursday

• Leonard and Penny are at it again! The on-again-off-again couple are giving a relationship another try on "The Big Bang Theory" (airing at 8 p.m. ET on CBS).
• If you can't get enough of James Marsden on "30 Rock," watch an all-new episode of the show at 8 p.m. ET, followed by another new episode at 9 on NBC.

Friday

• Heading to the movie theater? Your options are: "Man on a Ledge" starring Sam Worthington, Elizabeth Banks, Jamie Bell, Ed Harris and Edward Burns, "One for the Money" starring Katherine Heigl, Jason O'Mara and Sherri Shepherd, "The Grey" starring Liam Neeson and the wide release of "Albert Nobbs" starring Glenn Close.