Can an inductor be analogous to a hypothetical resistor that only reduces current and not voltage?
Not exactly. Inductor tends to maintain the current constant. But, it also produces a phase lag, that is current phasor lags behind the corresponding voltage. So this can not be realised in terms of resistor which has similar behaviour in both AC DC circuits. And apart from this, inductor can be used to obtain sudden high voltage by cutting off the current instantaneously. A pretty common application of this effect is conventional ballast used for starting tube lights.
