Just look at how senior reserve goes at different airlines and you will know how good/bad it really is.

At AA, reserve typically goes fairly senior to guys that live in base, then a bunch of line holders, and then reserve at the bottom of the seniority list. Being senior on reserve is cake, and lots of people choose to do that. I know people that could hold good lines that prefer to bid reserve because it is pretty easy with lots of chances for premium. Even getting premium on reserve at AA, you can often get your day off back if you work it right and know the tricks - and get paid 150% plus the credit for the reserve on those days, so about 250%.

Asking how good/bad reserve is won't tell you the whole story unless you see how senior/junior reserve goes.