Promotion and Reception
Action figures of Aki Ross have been produced by Palisades. On the Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within DVD, a bikini model photo shoot of Aki Ross is also included as one of the special features.
Entertainment Weekly named Aki an "It Girl", stating that "Calling this action heroine a cartoon would be like calling a Rembrandt a doodle." She was voted to be one of the sexiest women ever by Maxim and its readers, ranking 87th out of 100 and became the first fictional woman to ever make the list, additionally appearing on the issue's cover. Her appearance has been received positively by critics, with praise for the finer details of the character model such as the rendering of her hair. The New York Times described her as having the "sinewy efficiency" of Aliens franchise character Ellen Ripley and visual appeal of Julia Roberts' portrayal of Erin Brockovich. Film critic Roger Ebert noted that while he didn't once feel convinced Aki Ross was an actual human being, he conceded she was "lifelike", stating her creators "dare us to admire their craft. If Aki is not as real as a human actress, she's about as real a Playmate who has been retouched to glossy perfection." The book Digital Shock: Confronting the New Reality described her as a virtual actress having a "beauty that is 'really' impressive", comparing her to video game character Lara Croft.
In contrast, Robot Ghosts and Wired Dreams criticized her character as an example of the constantly kidnapped female in Japanese cinema, further "diluted" by her existence solely as a computer-generated character representing "an ideal, cinematic female character that has no real referent". Action and Adventure Cinema described her as the "least overtly eroticised" female characters in science fiction, though noted her as an example of the treatment of such characters as pin-up girls and "transformed into an erotic fantasy machine". Media Matrix: Sexing the New Reality noted the emphasis by her creators on making her appear real, though questioned the portrayal of her character, questioning if the presence of her unconsciousness in the film was intended as a means to have the character appear more human to viewers.
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