Riho

[3.0] "people criticizing her size are missing the point. its all smoke in mirrors. if she wasnt 2 feet tall and 40 kilos nobody in the wrestling world would even notice her cause she has literally nothing worth noticing. her size ends up making her an attraction. she's not even particularly athletic, her moves look sloppy. i dont think ive ever seen any wrestler's offense look so painless and weak, and yes that includes midgets"

[8.0] "Watched her since he began match Consistency gets a 7 longevity gets everything else gets 8 shes had more matches at better level of quickly than most have. 8 19 years un and has attest 11 -15 in front of her by the time i say she should be take a seat back in he early 40s e very few people can say this"

[7.0] "She has her moments that are very entertaining I feel like she doesn't get taken seriously because of her size I enjoy her as the underdog."

[3.0] "I feel like the only reason people like her and have rated her so highly is because she's cute. Riho as an actual wrestler is pretty awful, her moves have zero impact and she's not exactly "threatening." Not saying every single wrestler needs to be like that, but you'll find a lot of the people in WWE/AEW have an edge to them, whereas Riho is just kind of... there. She doesn't have a gimmick, whenever she's actually in the match she always looks like she's smiling (even when somebody is trying to get heat on her.) The truth is, nobody would care if she wasn't an attractive Joshi."

[7.0] "The people whining about her size forget wrestling isn't a real fight and the facade isn't needed anymore. This isn't 1975. Riho is a plucky underdog who manages to earn victories when she "shouldn't". There's a language barrier with promos and I think that is what ultimately held her back in North America from really catching on."

[2.0] "I never got Riho. She probably is a nice person but I don't think she has ever had a match I liked. Her moves look like they never connect. Her 619 is the sloppiest version that I have ever seen. Most of her high flying moves look awkward even though it suits her build. I just don't get how she still hasn't improved or worked out a style that fits her. I get that she is smaller but her high flying looks like it stalls her more than it looks like it hurts her opponent. She doesn't do well at moves. She doesn't have charisma. Most confusingly is she doesn't have a defined character."

[9.0] "Riho is amazing. Truly one of the most talented women's wrestlers in the world. Her size is not a flaw, it's a positive to her abilities, her size makes her an incredible underdog that is very easy to root for. Wish AEW used her more often. Super charismatic as well"

[7.0] "Riho is quite good and I think her look/body helps her stand out. My issue with her not being rated higher is simply that she's never around long enough for me to really get attached to her. She shows up, gets a pop, gets a few good matches, then either leaves, has visa issues, or gets injured. I would really enjoy a fulltime run for Riho to develop something and really show us she can get to the next level but until then she is a few steps behind Shida and Yuka."

[6.0] "She is a talented, likable wrestler who excels as an underdog, largely due to her small stature and size."

[5.0] "I just don't buy her as a big threat to any of the women in the division. I don't think she deserves nearly the amount of harassment she gets, and she seems super sweet, but I feel like with her size, she'd be best suited to an underdog role ala a Rey Mysterio where she works from underneath and uses her speed and agility to sometimes one-up her opponents. It would look more believable, and I'd probably be able to get her a bit more. She does work well with other talent around her size though."

[6.0] "I think Riho is a decent wrestler, she doesn't deserve the massive hate she gets sometimes, although of course, a person of her size need to know her stuff and work matches in a particular way, and I think that when she work matches based on her physique and respecting the logic and the business, she's good. It's a shame that Riho wrestles so little, but she's been wrestling since a very very young age, so it's understandable. She appears very few times, so every time she appears it's a return, and people get excited about it."

[9.0] "Excellent in every showing of hers and a consistent highlight for me. Always enjoy seeing her work. She's one of the most reliable sellers and can always make a match feel exciting and energetic. (Returning to leave rating later, first comment)"

[9.0] "This rating is far too low considering the talent being discussed here. Riho is one of the best wrestlers globally, and it's shown constantly through her positions in each company she's in. Stardom, AEW, Iceribbon, TJPW, etc. Either she's in the main event, fighting for a title, or at the very least a high-profile match on the card. In-ring, she's the ultimate underdog since she's so small; she can be thrown around and contorted and abused, which makes you want to root for her comeback, and oh boy, what a comeback. Her offense is fast-paced, exciting, and full of energy. She uses a lot of sneaky rollups, which is a trademark of her mentor, EMI sakura, and a good tool to end the match at any time. I often see complaints about her being too small and her strikes not looking believable. While the former is true, plenty of small wrestlers have endeared themselves to fans as Riho has to any audience she performs in front of, and the latter is just wrong; little lady really lays it in with her strike exchanges. At only 24, she's got 15 years of experience, which is insane that she's got this great mind for wrestling as she is still in her physical prime in fact we may not have seen her at her true potential yet which is crazy to think about."

[9.0] "Riho's been a reliably excellent wrestler for a decade plus at this point. She seems to be a magnet for weird people whose idea of what wrestling should be was determined in 1985, but so it goes. Talent is talent, whether it offends your traditional wrestling sensibilities or not."

[8.0] "I like Riho because of her in ring ability as well as her work ethic. She has been doing this since she was 9, Emi Sakura trained her and so did "Murder Grandpa" Minoru Suzuki to some extent. She has all of the charisma in the world, she recently moved to the States, and she is only 25 years old. She has plenty of time to improve and possibly even learn English so she can get on the mic. People hating on her is not what the wrestling community is based on. If you don't like her style, don't watch. If you have constructive criticism then just say that and don't bash on her for things she cannot change about herself. She is great for what she is capable of at the moment. Sure there are other women wrestlers out there who are more advanced in their craft. There are always going to be ways to improve your ability and style. Give her a chance to advance to the next level and see what she is capable of then. I believe she will be even better than she is now, with already over 1, 000 matches at her young age. Maybe some more on air time in AEW will get her to that point, but the AEW booking needs to improve for ALL the women. I've been watching wrestling since I was 5 and GLOW came on Saturdays, me and my dad would watch it. I remember watching Andy Kaufman wrestle women and think WTF? ! Riho wrestles men and women, and I feel she is really coming into her own right now. She will be one of the greats if she continues to improve every day. I know she will do her best! Ganbattene, ri ho-chan aishitemasu!"

[5.0] "Listen. I'm not the biggest fan of Riho's. The other side is not wrong, she's absolutely 70% in AEW currently because of Kenny and the people who prop her up on social media like she's the goddess of wrestling are weird and wrong. The haters are wrong too. Her matches aren't bad. They're passable, watchable even. I wouldn't say she's great. I would say she's "alright". The weirdo stans on both sides defending her like their lives depended on it AND hating her because some fat sweaty southern man told them to are both weird and need to chill out. Just enjoy what you want to enjoy and look to broaden your horizons."

[7.0] "The most popular Joshi wrestler under the Moeka prototype. Riho is the more technically sound wrestler out of the bunch under Emi Sakura, but is more reserved compared that has her character feel a little hollow other than being "the ace". Personally I prefer Mizuki just a little more."

"Riho I know her cause AEW I still can't believe it she's still so Young but already became veteran in this industry, people need to realize she absolutely solid wrestler. I always love her match it's just give u a view size is not matter Riho can win against everyone I hope I can see more of her actions in AEW"

[9.0] "I'll state upfront that I'm not an AEW fan by any stretch. If anything, I'm admittedly perhaps over critical. The company is full of disappointments going back to its inception. With that out of the way, I will honestly never understand the sheer hate that Riho gets. She is lovely, she has strong in-ring charisma, and, although she is of a smaller stature, she has an in-ring style that plays well to that. She is particularly impressive for coming back after the injury she received a while back. I feel the lower ratings are from people blaming her for the faults of the way she is booked (Roman Reigns receives similar unfair criticism from the opposite direction) and people who have it out for anything that isn't WWE."

[8.0] "Im glad I dont get all of my wrestling opinions from a racist old man from Kentucky, and therefore am able to see the wealth of talent Riho possesses. Riho is incredibly athletic, a great underdog and has proven to be inspirational to younger female fans. She always gets positive reactions from the crowd and seeing her advertised for AEW TV always gets me to tune in. Certainly factors that merit something about a rage induced 0/10!"

[10.0] "Riho is the most fun high flyer that AEW has. She is quick and super athletic and flexible and can get out of any situation. Shes the ultimate babyface, the moment her music hits you cant help but get excited and smile. They should let her talk more often on pre-tapes with subtitles. Heres to hoping she wont disappear for months at a time in 2024!"

[6.0] "Riho's size makes her controversial in wrestling as she is barely 5 foot and 100 pounds. This does make some of her offense look unbelievable. She can wrestle in the ring, and she does have the ability to make a crowd love her. Got a really good push at the star in AEW which helped her get over with that audience."

"One of the best female wrestlers of the modern era. Amazing psychology, connection with fans and almost always has great in ring performances"

[2.0] "She would be good in an Indy environment, but on TV where you need some semblance of believability. It's inconsistent especially against talents much bigger than her. at which point the "Suspension of Disbelief" ends up on the meter with the arrow at "That's Ridiculous". I can name many Joshi talents better than her & certainly behind Emi Shida & Sakazaki in the joshi talents on the AEW Roster alone. I feel like she's a lot of contrived Buzz among AEW Fans & I can't understand why they go gaga for her outside of the "Idol Group" Image similarites."

[6.0] "Riho hasn't really had the resume throughout her career to be considered one of the best women's wrestlers in the world. Out of all the joshis that have had time on American television, it isn't a particularly remarkable run. It isn't to say that the pieces aren't there, every now and then Riho has shown that there is definite potential to be expounded upon. Despite the fact that she's wrestled for the majority of her life, the resume given isn't one I'd consider top tier. Her work is slightly above average, but it still feels pretty bare bones in comparison to her contemporaries. Her long stint in Gatoh Pro, AEW, and short time in TJPW and Stardom hasn't really resonated with me as much as others. That said, Riho has given AEW some of their better women's matches, specifically the ones with Deeb, Hayter, and Nyla Rose. If she was a next-level babyface wrestler, she'd definitely silence all of the doubters. There's flashes, but it's only just that for now."

[8.0] "Honestly i really dont get people hating on Riho because she's a really talented worker who produced some of the best matches in the AEW women's division and she's an amazing babyface underdog, it's really hard to hate her. It's a shame that she hasn't a lot of TV time because she's among the best in the AEW Women's roster."

[10.0] "You'd be hard pressed to find a better babyface in wrestling anywhere. Although her ring work is crisp and skilled, it's the in ring character work that really makes her click. A very subtle character-a demure but tough underdog in an over the top world is an interesting contrast. AEW is always better when she's on it."

[5.0] "She's just alright, far from being one of the best joshi wrestlers. She works pretty good as an underdog but she looks so frail it can make her offense look silly."

[5.0] "Riho is alright, she however is ultimately held back by her height, or lack there of. Her height ultimately holds her back in American because it prevents her from being believable on offense, unless she adopts some borderline suicidal style like Darby Allin, she wont be believable and is probably better suited for Japan."

[9.0] "Adorable as a panda bear, and slippery as a snake, that's the good girl Riho, who at her young age has given quite interesting matches and her physique does not seem to be an impediment to what she can achieve now and in the future, a nice addition to any company."

[7.0] "I think she's a great underdog babyface, much like Darby, who can take a beating but eventually turn the tables. Her size and sweet demeanor make her a natural babyface, and feuds with big girls like Nyla are very interesting."

[1.0] "A complete waste of roster space in AEW. When Joshi like Yuka Sakazaki and Emi Sakura waste away on the undercard and Dark tapings, Riho is given prime space in main events and ample TV time to showcase her flimsy offense which her opponents are forced to sell and make themselves look worse for selling in the process. Perhaps her work makes better sense in other contexts, but for AEW, in my opinion, she's a very poor fit who I don't care to see again."

[8.0] "I wasn't really a fan of Riho for a while. Her offense looked soft, she did the foot stomp thing too much, and didn't have a lot of versatility. But since then she's improved so much-- or maybe the division improved around her and there are now more people who can keep up with her. I also think she has great charisma as a face-- she legitimately seems like a super nice person that I naturally want to root for. Criminally underused in AEW right now."

[6.0] "Great babyface, but entirely one-dimensional. She is great in the ring, but even my suspension of disbelief is strained whenever she goes toe to toe with larger women, as her small figure requires her to be more aggressive and intense in her strikes and kicks to make me belief that they do hurt her trained opponents. I like her, but I also think there has been no progression to her character or wrestling ability in the last four years and at this point I just would like to see that a bit more."

[9.0] "First, I don't get the hate that she receives, she's so talented and a great babyface. She had a great reign as AEW women's champion and I think they should count on her more now that she's back."

[5.0] "I honestly don't get all the affection that Riho gets from fans online. She's not a standout as a worker, she's frequently injury prone, and she's no more charismatic than any other joshi. I really just don't get it."

[2.0] "Riho is probably among AEW's worst wrestler from their women division. To begin with, I do not believe her small stature is a problem. I fee like being the smallest women on the roster automatically makes her a great underdog against virtually anyone. When you are a talented wrestler like Rey Mysterio, your small size can be a great asset in terms of psychology and nimbleness in the ring. Unfortunately, Riho isn't a great wrestler. She doesn't seems to take her size as an advantage as she actively tries to wrestle like anyone else by doing hard hitting moves and high spot manoeuvre that looks either soft, unconvincing or careless. Riho also looks completely lost in the ring, seemingly unfamiliar with an environment that isn't a mattress in some weird apartment building. In latest years, top talents like Asuka, Kairi Sane, Io Shirai and Hikaru Shida found success and made great showcase of Joshi wrestling in the western market. Meanwhile, Riho managed to drag down top-tier talents like Thunder Rosa and Serena Deeb in sub-par matches."

[5.0] "Another one of the 'Sakura gang' that AEW seems to be obsessed (or stuck) with. They are all pretty solid workers but nonetheless lame, nor great leads for any division in aew - AEW must have panic-dumped the belt on her after Kylie left. Yes, she is small (in and of itself not an issue), maybe young Rey Mysterio or Darby small, but she doesn't move nor wrestle like them. The ironic thing is, AEW has tried to present a serious wrestling environment that makes some sense, which is why most the competitors are similarly 'indie sized', which is the same reason why they don't want full-on intergender matches. Since they don't do weight divisions, when they use big monsters, they are treated as such and protected in a way that is realistic. But when someone her size is pretty regularly in the land of giants, yet kept super strong, it does no favors to the roster by protecting Riho like they have; she probably wouldn't even be chosen as the lead champ in Stardom Wrestling. Her selling is quite good and the soft style doesn't bother me, but aew have done her a favor by underutilizing her -- repetitive match layouts and promos like "i'll try my best". She should be innovating at her age instead of being on autopilot. A much better fit with the perennially undersized TJPW or stardom's high-speed scene."

[6.0] "Riho is a decent wrestler. She lacks size and power, which sometimes make her seem not a very credible challenger. However, she understands enough about wrestling psychology to make things work for her, and she has shown that she is able to get over with Japanese and American crowds."

[9.0] "The AEW Booking for her is sometimes unbelievable because of her size, but she shows so much personality out there I cant help but like her and the way she sells makes her a great underdog and her matches tell a good story. I still need to see some of her matches in the Joshi promotions."

[2.0] "So undersized it's obvious that her opponent has to cooperate to help Riho do any offense. Appreciate her effort but should not be a top figure. If she was a midcard persona to help younger talent get over, I could maybe see it, but anything more just seems a little ridiculous."

[8.0] "The only reason why Riho's rating isn't above an 8 is because of her time in AEW. She's really good, but she's so much smaller than 99% of their roster and it isn't a good fit for her. Just look at her ratings before 2019 and how they've been since. She was awesome in Japan and did alright in AEW, but it's not the same. She took a chance and made good money though, which is great. In Japan, where she was more comfortable in every facet, she's beloved. In the states, you can see the difference."

[6.0] "Athletic but a charisma vacuum. Absolutely zero interest in her gimmick in a US context, I appreciate this may be less important elsewhere. Between the unconvincing physique and bad look and persona it's hard to get excited about her."

[4.0] "Riho works okay enough in Japan when she's up against women of similar size who can match her speed, but in the US she just looks out of place, with an offence that doesn't look at all compelling when up against wrestlers 15-30kg heavier than her. Her attire and look also don't work in the US, since in Japan you can accept her "idol" attire and "cute" personality since that's a part of Japanese culture, but in the US it just comes across as kind of weird. She's always overly bubbly just for the sake of it, which doesn't match the design of AEW where all the North American talent at least try to just be 'wrestlers' instead of "I'm so happy to see everyone! " smilers like Riho. Even in Stardom, where she would fit far better, she would still struggle to be one of the top 15 wrestlers there. Her speed is the one thing she has going for her, and that can be impressive at times, but the absolute lack of impact in her attacks, plus her small build with absolutely zero size or muscle, makes it impossible to take her as a serious threat. When I look at Syuri and Mayu in Stardom, or Deeb and Hayter in AEW, I see wrestlers with the ability to actually hurt people; when I look at Riho, I see a little girl that would get scared and knocked over by a gust of wind. At least other smaller-stature wrestlers like Tam Nakano or even Leyla Hirsch can show they have genuine striking/grappling skills plus convincing enough attitude to prove they belong in a ring, but I don't get that impression from Riho. Every time I see her win with her feather-light offence, I'm reminded "oh yeah, that's because wrestling is fake". She's honestly far better suited as a pure comedy wrestler in DDT, since at least that promotion's in-world logic would allow her to have matches without regard for how seriously she should be taken. I could also take her in AEW as a loveable underdog who tries really hard but ultimately gets destroyed by her larger and more skilled opponents. Sadly, she's become over enough that she'll never be relegated to that level, even if it would better suit her. I guess the fact she's as over as she is is a positive, since at means her performances have a bit more juice with the crowd's support behind her. Still, I'd rather not see her in AEW anymore."

[4.0] "I thought Riho was very mediocre, very bad at bumping and was very uncharismatic. Was never amazed viewing anything she did in AEW, and was even more amazed how she became their first ever Women's champion."

[8.0] "Easily one of the most sympathetic babyfaces in the world, and backs it up with high workrate and awesome bumping and selling."

[2.0] "Riho is literally the worst wrestler in AEW's women division. I don't know what they were thinking when they made her the inaugural champion by beating Nyla Rose. Yeah, no, someone literally smaller than Rey Mysterio has no business beating Nyla Rose and attempt to make it believable. But my primary issue with Riho isn't even her booking against larger opponents, it's her in-ring work. Her strikes are awful and sloppy, look weak AF, her high flying is terrible, and she's just all-around boring to watch. Her opponents look like jokes for selling for any of her offense as a result. That mark Excalibur constantly touts her age in comparison to how many years she's been wrestling but you would've thought that after 15 years, she would've learned to be a good wrestler at some point, BOOM!"

[6.0] "She has a great moveset and seems to be over with the crowds. The only issue I have is that she is tiny compared to the AEW roster and her attacks don't feel like they have any weight behind them. If her style was more of a submission specialist I could understand that but her kicks, knees and strikes just lack that power that make it seem unbelievable that she could take down someone almost double her size like a Nyla Rose."

[8.0] "Riho has been wrestling since grade school. While she, in my opinion, has never had a truly outstanding match, she has had a massive number of very good to excellent ones. While Emi Sakura's influence is very evident in her in-ring style, Riho has developed a unique variety of high-impact suplexes and foot stomps to complement her flash pin skills. From the confines of Ichigaya Chocoloate Square to the vastness of the United Center, she always manages to get the crowd invested, and she has proven to be a very good live TV draw."

[4.0] "Riho is not bad in the ring. However because of her low weight her moves are not believable at all. She also lacks a lot of charisma. I never got her appeal and thought she was a weird choice for the first ever AEW Womens Champion. I hope she returns to Japan soon. I think she is a better fit there as she can speak the language and there are more women with a similar weight as her."