It may have been the first of it's kind, but it's a really poorly realized book and, most importantly, it's been done better several times since then. It's horribly uneven, going from utterly absurd (the main character is from the planet Cronk, his only weakness being 'Cronkite,') to truly funny, to deeply serious, to flat out pornographic. To me, it appears that it was a first draft, written over the course of many sittings with the author in many different (possibly drug-induced) states of mind, and finally published without ever seeing an editor. If the idea of superheroes as real people with real problems appeals to, watch The Incredibles (obviously influenced by this book, incidentally), and please read "Soon I Will Be Invincible." Both are far more rewarding and worthy of your time.
silly, broad humor, way dated, and moralistic ... but fun, and definitely smart and competently structured and smoothly (if uninspiredly) written. potato chip book.