Brendan Coyle, Hugh Bonneville, Allen Leech and Kevin Doyle as seen in “Downton Abbey”

The end is nigh: The final season of one of television's most celebrated dramas kicks off on PBS this week, a bittersweet event for the millions of fans who are both psyched to see new episodes and sorry to see the show end. Season 6 of "Downton Abbey" premieres Sunday, Jan. 3, on PBS.

"Downton Abbey" was something of a phenomenon when it premiered on BBC in September 2010. By the time it became available to North American audiences on PBS in January 2011, it seemed as if the whole world was buzzing about the juicy drama. American audiences devoured it as eagerly as the British had, and a television legend was born.

The series follows the residents -- both the aristocratic owners, the Crawleys, and their servants -- of a Yorkshire country estate. The series weaves its way through an interesting time in British history, beginning the day after the 1912 sinking of the Titanic and ending in the year 1925.

So far, the series has followed the Crawley family and their household through the First Balkan War, the women's suffrage movement, the First World War, an outbreak of the Spanish flu, the Irish War of Independence and a few other significant events along the way. But while the historical context (not to mention the fabulous sets and wardrobe) adds a certain authenticity to the show, it's the interpersonal drama that keeps viewers coming back for more.

This season being the last, fans can expect to see many of the ongoing storylines wrap up. Carson (Jim Carter, "The Golden Compass," 2007) and Mrs. Hughes (Phyllis Logan, "Lovejoy") take some major steps forward in their relationship; Branson (Allen Leech, "The Imitation Game," 2014) begins his new life in America; and Lady Mary (Michelle Dockery, "Self/less," 2015) makes some major life decisions that hopefully will lead her to a happy and fulfilling place by the end of the series.

"Downton" fans likely don't need to be told the series premiere approaches -- they've been waiting for it with bated breath. Season 6 of the hit drama starts Sunday, Jan. 3, on PBS.

Medieval musical: A new season of ABC's musical comedy is about to begin, and this one promises even more musical laughs than the last. The network is calling it a "five-week comedy extravaganza," which is a step up from last year, which was only a "four-week comedy extravaganza."

"Galavant" is a musical series set in medieval times where a king (Timothy Omundson, "Psych") has stolen away the woman (Mallory Jansen, "Young & Hungry") that the eponymous Galavant (Joshua Sasse, "Rogue") loves. The whole first season revolved around a plan to win back the beautiful maiden, but things very quickly went awry, and the plot twisted and turned throughout the four weeks -- all to a soundtrack of catchy tunes and clever lyrics, of course.

While last season's ratings numbers were not phenomenal, they were good enough to score a renewal, thanks, in part, to the exceptional star power the series managed to accrue. "Downton Abbey" star Hugh Bonneville, comedy musician "Weird Al" Yankovic and comedian Ricky Gervais ("Derek") made musical appearances in the show, as well as John Stamos ("Full House"), Anthony Head ("Buffy the Vampire Slayer") and Rutger Hauer ("Blade Runner," 1982).

With more singing, swashbuckling and steamy romance to come, season 2 promises to resolve some of last year's cliffhangers and take viewers on a brand-new exciting journey. Don't miss this premiere of "Galavant," airing Sunday, Jan. 3, on ABC.

Wild comedy: It's been a phenomenal few years for the Duplass Brothers. Mark and Jay Duplass are everywhere at the moment -- both enjoy continuing guest spots in "The Mindy Project"; Mark has starred in critically acclaimed films such as "The One I Love" (2014), his HBO show "Togetherness" is a big hit, and his previous project, "The League," is wrapping up after seven successful seasons; Jay is the showrunner for "Togetherness" and also stars in the groundbreaking, Golden Globe-winning series "Transparent."

HBO is adding another major credit to the resumé of both brothers: two seasons of the animated series "Animals," produced by Duplass Brothers Productions, have been ordered, and the show is set to premiere on the premiere cable network Friday, Feb. 5.

The first two episodes of the series were screened at this year's Sundance Film Festival and garnered great reviews, which ultimately led to HBO's offer. The show looks at the world through the eyes of the lowliest creatures living in New York City -- rats, bedbugs, pigeons and more. Its charm and wit hard to resist, it's likely to be another hit for both the Duplass brothers and HBO.

In an interview with Variety, Mark said: "Jay and I have been excited about bringing the principles of indie film to the TV space, and to have our first real experiment land at a place like HBO for two seasons is beyond what we could have imagined."

"Animals" premieres Friday, Feb. 5, on HBO.