Thursday’s TV highlights

SERIES

Love Bites: This new comedy anthology series offers “Love, American Style” vignettes centered on love, sex and romance (10 p.m. NBC).

The First 48: Missing Persons: The critical early hours after a subject’s disappearance are the focus of this docu-series spin-off (10 p.m. A&E).

NY Ink: It’s tattooing Big Apple-style in this new reality series (10 p.m. TLC).

SPECIALS

2011 National Spelling Bee: Young contestants strive to be letter-perfect and make it from the semifinals (7 a.m. ESPN) to the finals (5:30 p.m. ESPN) of the annual competition in Washington, D.C..

Death of a Mars Rover: This new documentary special charts NASA’s efforts to keep its Spirit rover functioning after several years of surveying the Martian surface (5 and 8 p.m. National Geographic).

Pride Comedy Jam: Gay and lesbian comics are out looking for laughs in this new stand-up special (10:30 p.m. Showtime).

MOVIES

Godzilla, King of the Monsters: A Japanese monster movie marathon kicks off with this 1956 classic that was re-edited for American theaters (5 p.m. TCM).

SPORTS

College softball: The NCAA World Series gets underway in Oklahoma City (10 a.m., and 12:30, 4 and 6:30 p.m. ESPN2).

Baseball: The Pirates meet the Mets (10 a.m. MLB), and the Giants face the Cardinals or the Twins take on the Royals. (5 p.m. MLB).

Tennis: Play continues at the French Open with the women’s semifinals (10 a.m. Tennis).

Basketball: The Dallas Mavericks and the Miami Heat shoot it out in Game 2 of the NBA Finals (6 p.m. ABC).