There's a thunder on the horizon, Gritty City, and it's not our inevitable return to a gray autumn rainscape. No, that ominous rumble you hear, pitched way, way down in the basso profundo hum of a gathering tremor, is nothing more than the return of the Dockyard Derby Dames: Tacoma's premier roller derby league and an all-around explosion of eight-wheeled badassery. The action returns for season nine Oct. 4, when the Marauding Mollys extend laurel and hearty handshakes to the Emerald City Roller Girls' Andromedolls. In a follow-up bout, league play gets underway, with Femme Fianna attempting to defang the Trampires.

Read Christian Carvajal's full story on the Dockyard Derby Dames' season opener in the Music & Culture section.

DOCKYARD DERBY DAMES, 6 p.m., Saturday, Oct. 4, Pierce College Fort Steilacoom Health Education Center, 9401 Farwest Dr. SW, Lakewood, $12 advance, $15 at the door, dockyardderbydames.com