I started off flying a park flyer earlier this year. That predisposed me to take a hard look at electrics. IMHO they are very expensive (especially with LiPos). If you want to fly small stuff the comparison isn't as bad. But if you want to fly >.40 sized planes, I think its better to start with 2-cycle glow powered planes.
A great for instance on cost is the Hangar 9 Corsair review by Greg Covey. He seems to do a great job with all his electric conversions, but man are they expensive. While the brushless motors are comparable in cost to larger 2cycle engines. You get hammered when you factor in the speed control and the batteries. I believe Greg's Corsair was $600 for just the battery and the speed control.