Don't diss
Asuka.
I, for one, always preferred her spunky damaged-goods attitude over Rei's monotone. And I'd wager she was on par with Rei, in terms of popularity, even when the anime aired originally - also, she does have appeal towards a wider margin of viewers too, I'd guess.
And I always thought she was the more recognized sex-symbol of
Evangelion. I mean, I can sorta understand Rei's appeal, but... to me, it was always about
Asuka.