The opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics (6:30 p.m., NBC) offers hours of spectacle, a peek at royalty and the always-inspiring parade of young athletes from nations the world over.

The set for the opening ceremony is said to resemble pastoral Britain, complete with meadows, running water and barnyard animals. The theme is “Isles of Wonder.” The creative team behind the event includes Danny Boyle, the Oscar-winning director of “Slumdog Millionaire,” and Stephen Daldry, the Oscar-nominated director of “Billy Elliot,” among other films.

Look for speeches from Sebastian Coe, chairman of the London Olympics organizing committee, and Jacques Rogge, president of the International Olympic Committee. Queen Elizabeth II will officially open the games. If there is any real suspense to these events, it’s waiting to see who will light the Olympic flame.

The Internet and social media have complicated the broadcast of sporting events taking place in another time zone. Over the past couple of Olympics, viewers in search of suspense had to restrain themselves from checking out results on their computers and smartphones, so they could watch the delayed prime-time events with some measure of excitement. This year, NBC promises to stream or broadcast sporting events live over the course of the Olympics.

The opening ceremony, however, will be subject to what they used to call a “tape delay.” (What’s tape?) Some may complain about that, but I can’t blame the network for trying to attract as many viewers as possible for what is essentially a show.

Griping about the Olympics is not yet a medal event, but it has a long tradition. We’ve already had complaints about the American team’s uniforms. Londoners have been grumbling about the traffic snarls and other inconveniences arising from their host city status. Perhaps the biggest beef involves the multi-billion-dollar price tag for the sporting extravaganza, a fantastic expense during an economic downturn and at a time of budget cuts arising from an official policy of austerity.

Tonight’s other highlights

• A grave mistake marks the end of a fishing season on “Deadliest Catch” (7 p.m., Discovery).

• A Kansas City dungeon provides solutions to several murder mysteries on “Evil, I” (9 p.m., ID).

• Rattlesnakes find furtive hiding spots on “Swamp Wars” (9 p.m., Discovery).