DC Comics has done a lot of reprinting of Batman stories over the year. Most prominently in the relatively expensive hardcover ARCHIVES series. But in recent years they’ve been branching out a bit. The latest iteration, BATMAN: SECRETS OF THE BATCAVE, is a theme collection with much material that hasn’t been reprinted before in an affordable, softcover package.

Material in this collection covers from 1942 to 2001, and principally covers material from 1946 to 1957 that the ARCHIVES series hasn’t reached yet. By my count, twelve of the sixteen stories in this volume have never been reprinted in a softcover version before.

The book is divided into three sections with the longest section focusing on the trophies and secret weapons of the cave. The origin of the giant penny is detailed in “The Penny Plunderers.” A weekend invitation to an exotic island takes a deadly turn (sound familiar?) in “Dinosaur Island.” You find out the secret of “The Man Behind the Red Hood,” see how a set of steel bulletproof vests spell ironic doom to the “Brothers in Crime,“ find out the secret of Batarang X in “The 100 Batarangs of Batman,” see how a mummy case finds it’s way into the Batcave and brings a deadly guest in “The Thousand and One Trophies of Batman,” and find out the history of “The First Batman,” among other stories in this section.

The second section consists of two stories detailing the origins of The Batcave. The frankly goofy story “The Origin of the Batcave” which involves time travel and Batman dyeing himself red to pass as an Indian. And, the modern classic, “The Man Who Falls.”

The third section involves intruders, the threat of discovery of The Batcave, and The Batcave as a principal story setting. Batman hunts Man-Bat through the caverns in “Shadow Play” and pays a visit to Earth-Two, chronicled by Alan Brennert and Jim Aparo, where he confronts Hugo Strange using his counterpart’s Batcave as his headquarters. “Prisoners of the Batcave” finds Batman and Robin having to escape from The Batcave due to a booby trap in order to save an innocent man’s life. And, perhaps best of all, Paul Pope tells the story which is illustrated by Jay Stephens of what happens when a runaway boy stumbles across the Batcave.

The emphasis is on fun, complete stories in this collection. And that extends to the bonus feature of various cutout diagrams and panoramas detailing the layout of The Batcave through the decades. Most stories aren’t a classic, but they’re genuinely well crafted and good examples of the time they were created in. And they reflect the idea that Batman has a rich world and history that is slowly revealed to the reader over time. On a whole, they’re definitely not dark, sophisticated, and adult though. Perhaps another modern story or two would make this collection better, Batman escaping from The Batcave during “Cataclysm,” for instance, but it aims and succeeds at presenting a fine selection of self contained stories.

The volume cries for at least a follow-up focusing on the many vehicles of Batman through the years. Or perhaps the best schemes by Batman’s rogues over the years, maybe the ideal way to reprint “Dark Knight, Dark City.”