Maki Itoh

[6.0] "She has a lot of personality, she's really funny, she connects really well with the crowd and she has charisma. But her wrestling is really average and her move set is really limited. Hopefully she improves it."

[6.0] "I know Maki Itoh has only been wrestling for less than a decade but she really needs to re evaluate many things about her matches. She needs to try a more new variety of moves because because she is so repetitive and limited"

[10.0] "Maki is awesome, I won't be convinced otherwise. Just such a fun wrestler, who is very capable in ring too. Charisma off the charts."

[10.0] "I'm not really the biggest TJPW fan (nothing wrong with the company, just not my thing) but always liked Maki and she is absolutely killing it in Stardom. Maki has gotten much better in the ring as years have gone on and does far better in the ring than her detractors would ever let on, but what truly pushes her up to a 10 in my book is that her charisma levels are positively off the charts. She knows how to play to fans and win them over, and when she comes out it's absolutely The Maki Itoh Show (in a good way). She gets it like few others do, she's fun, and she's worth watching just for that."

[8.0] "Boatloads of charisma here! She has a very catchy theme and while not the most technically sound worker, she's still good and so much fun to watch."

"What a fun character - Waiting for her to come to australia so i can see her live in person that would be a treat"

[7.0] "Itoh is a fun character who has proven herself in the ring. Her in ring psychology and ability to tell the story in the ring are good. She is extremely charismatic. Her biggest issue is her American booking which can see her in stinkers of matches (vs Mickie James at the memorial show) and sometimes makes her more of a comedy wrestler than what she can be."

[10.0] "No pro wrestler male or female has captivated me more than Maki Itoh. She just gets it. Her immense charisma, her masterful facial expressions, her aura, her presence, her ability to work any crowd like putty in her hands, all on display every match she wrestles. Also to the people who only saw her in AEW where she had to work a comedy style and gave her bad ratings, citing that she can't wrestle, you can't be any more wrong. Itoh can go in the ring, she's not a technical savant, her style is much more brawler with a bit of submission and she excels at in-ring story-telling thanks to aforementioned facial expressions and her fantastic selling. Her singles matches with the likes of Mizuki, Shoko Nakajima, and Miyu Yamashita are fantastic. Also she sings her own theme song."

[8.0] "Maki itoh is a unique wrestler in which she doesn't have a really large moveset, she mainly uses a DDT variation and Boston crabs and Cloverleafs and her most famous move the kokeshi but she has these great story telling matches which have lots of emotions and great in ring, she's also a really good character that can be great on Mainstream US TV as shown in her AEW appearances, Her Team with Miyu Yamashita is also really good, One of the very best in Joshi wrestling, I can see her winning the Princess of Princess title within the next 2 years and eventually moving to the US and becoming a big Star"

[8.0] "Underrated Joshi wrestler, who surprisingly doesn't get as much attention as the other girls who come to America."

[9.0] "(Sorry english is not my firtst language) She is the most underrated TJPW star, after that long story she still doesnt have main title adn she have one of most touchng story (only my opinion) in wrestling history. And on the end im need to say this she needs to make opening for oshi no ko"

[9.0] "Please take my True Wrestling Fan card away, because I love watching Maki Itoh perform. She's captivating, knows how to engage a crowd, and is a performer in every sense of the word. I mean, who else sings their own theme song while walking to the ring? One minute, Maki will be laying on the mat pouting like a child or posing for the crowd, while the next minute she'll be flipping them off and cutting her opponent open with a pizza cutter. There is a lot of depth and diversity to Maki's character, and she lets every aspect of her personality shine through her wrestling persona. I will rate Maki on three aspects per Bret Hart's idea for rating wrestlers: look, promo, and in-ring ability. Starting with look, Maki has this down. She clearly puts a lot of effort into her appearance, from ring gear to hair to make up. She claims to be "The Cutest in the World" but also has that goth punk aesthetic similar to Misa Amane from Death Note going on. In other words, it's hard to tell if she's a pop idol or ready to cut your face open. Moving on to promo skills, whether you are fluent in Japanese or not, she is worth listening to because of the emotion she conveys when she speaks. She's unbridled and unconscious. She isn't apprehensive on the mic and doesn't hide her emotions. My ears always perk up when she picks up the mic after winning a match. Lastly, there's in-ring ability - an area where some wrestling fans knock Maki. Although she is not the most athletic wrestler in the world, she proves that creativity is more important than acrobatic ability. She has solid timing and strikes, including kicks and headbutts. Her facial expressions are second to none. Watch her match against Minoru Suzuki at TJPW Grand Princess 2024 and you'll see the amount of drama she is able to create just with facial expressions alone as Minoru builds up to striking her. Maki also does a lot of traditional wrestling moves that old school fans will appreciate. In particular, I like her rolling single leg crab, DDT, Texas Cloverleaf, and especially her Itoh Special (Liontamer) which looks especially painful. And I always pop when she lands a falling headbutt following an Irish whip, as that has to be one of the most unique ways any wrestler has ever run the ropes. She has a good understanding of storytelling in the ring, which I will take over flashy or gimmicky moves any day. In conclusion, wrestling is a subjective. There is no definitive style of wrestling and it shouldn't bother you if a former pop idol is now a professional wrestler. Everyone has something that resonates with them, and I will unabashedly say that Maki Itoh's vision of pro wrestling resonates with me."

"The cutest pro wrestler in the world! Itoh-chan! Anyone who follows Maki Itoh's wrestling career across TJPW, AEW, GCW, and all other indie scenes she has appeared on knows that she is definitely one of the best wrestlers in the world, apart from being the cutest in the world. She captivates the audience with her charisma and her energy. And she will flip off anyone who gets on her way when it comes to winning matches. Her matches against Rina Yamashita are exceptional and a must watch. Her matches against Mizuki and Miyu Yamashita are also fantastic."

[10.0] "Pure charisma. She's got an unreal presence, she can work a good match. It'll be interesting to see what stories she can tell in a televised format."

[8.0] "The Gran Naniwa tribute match with Super Delfin is enough to put her in the hall of fame. You are an Itoh simp whether you admit it or not."

[9.0] "WHO IS THE CUTEST IN THE WORLD! ITOH CHAN! She is one of my favourite wrestler currently, for the sheer amount of joy she manages to bring to the ring. Hilarious, solid in ring and genuinely entertaining. She is a cartoon character come to life who is of course, also cute. Her unique backstory accentuates her quirky, crazy character. I always have a good time watching Maki Itoh."

"Say what you want about her "pure skills". Maki Ito is entertaining as hell! and whenever she comes out, she immediately has the crowd behind her. Wrestling is just more fun with her around. That has to account for something."

"Maki Itoh is one of the best up-and-coming wrestlers coming from a very competitive Japanese scene where it seems like everyone and anyone is going to the US. He character work is one of the best and her in-ring skills are improving every time I see her. Many might see her as cringy or not a good worker. but her matches with Mizuki or Yamahsita are very good matches that show her skills."

[7.0] "Very hard to rate, Maki Itoh exists and works well within the kawaii fairy-tale universe of TJPW; but when removed from that environment, can come across as cringey and out-of-place, as many of the more cartoony gimmicks in TJPW would. This is a not a knock at Japanese wrestling either, Maki (or other TJPW character gimmicks like Haruna Neko, Raku, Pom Harajuku et al) wouldn't really work in Stardom for example. And therein lies the problem. I'd give Maki a 10 or 9 for her TJPW work, but in AEW? I don't think it works terribly well, unless they give her better matches to wrestle in- ones which are more reliant on dramatic ringwork, than comedy. Orange Cassidy has had to change to remain watchable in AEW, Maki Itoh would have to do the same, or be used sparingly, in that American market. Ironic, considering that in TJPW itself, she has been working more serious matches, especially in the build to her excellent title match at Wrestle Princess II in October 2021."

[8.0] "Maki is definitely an undiscovered gem in the same vein as Edge, Orange Cassidy, and Christian Cage. By that, I mean she has the ability, comedy aspect, and charisma that some of the greats have been able to parlay into their character. She's also a great character in general who will probably bring a smile to your face, but her goofy entrance actually hides a fierce and very hungry competitor who can be a challenge for the great ones in Japan and the US. It's too bad that I can't go to Japan to see just how good she is against other joshi, but I have to give her this rating, because while she's not perfect, she is without a doubt a unique blend of toughness, comedy, and charisma. If Mick Foley taught us anything, it's that sometimes that exact trifecta equals great success."

[10.0] "Maki Itoh has the same views on wrestling as respected Japanese legends, she has the necessary basic skills, due to which she can build a variety of stories with her opponents, and the distinctive features and mannerisms of the character are layered on top, which make her special and memorable. Maki is a truly great performer with a huge number of amazing singles matches and amazing tag team matches, a woman who has been forcing fans to watch the story of her ascent for several years, who (so far) can't find the final, a woman who can look competitive against the monstrous Kazusada Higuchi, despite the fact that she much lower and much thinner. To be honest, I'm tired of reading comments about her being limited, because it's not true, she does no more and no less than any other wrestler in TJPW. But, of course, most of the negative comments are left by those who have seen two or three of her matches inside someone else's promotion for Maki. I believe that AEW fans need to finally come down from heaven and accept the simple fact that everything doesn't revolve around their favorite company, a person has a career elsewhere, there is a booking elsewhere, there are titles and confrontations elsewhere. On what basis you decide that you can leave your mark on her profile is the biggest mystery that haunts me. Returning to Itoh, she is a real phenomenon, successfully combining excellent wrestling and entertainment. Any wrestler who knows how to sell himself deserves respect, but in the case of Maki, this is a fundamentally different level."

[3.0] "Judging by her few appearances on AEW, I think I'm done with Maki Ito's shtick. She's not particularly horrible in the ring, but she isn't very good either - and without mentioning her frequent botches. While I could pardon some of her flaw in the ring as her being mostly a comedic wrestler, I cannot rate her any higher considering I personally find her comedic routine boring and genuinely cringe-worthy. At least, she is mostly inoffensive: shows up once in a while on YouTube, sing her theme song, delivers an underwhelming match and loose before leaving for another few months. She's not good nor entertaining, but at least she's not there often which is definitely a positive."

[8.0] "A charismatic rising star with a fun gimmick, who conquers Japan and has recently begun to perform frequently on the American scene. A good ring skill, a pleasant voice and the ability to entertain the audience well, 8 points."

[7.0] "Maki Itoh is extremely fun to watch, and a good example of a decent joshi. Her gimmick suits her personality so damn well, and she's really gotten over with the TJPW crowds as well as the good fans of AEW and the American indies. Her in-ring work is decent, but not on the level of people like Shoko Nakajima or Yuka Sakazaki. Her team with Miyu Yamashita is also great, as both women are so talented. Maki's future is bright, but she has to keep getting better to keep up with the ever-changing wrestling fanbase."

[8.0] "Shes obviously not a 0. No one is a 0. Why do they even have that as an option. Vincent isn't a ZERO.She is perfect for tjpw and an acquired taste in aew and gcw. Pretty damn funny and entertaining to me. Maybe not great in ring yet that I've seen."

[0.0] "Little wrestling ability and the worst women's gimmick i ever saw just below Nikki Ash's super hero thing. Seems to only play up to those who care about how pretty a wrestler is. wrestler's arent supposed to be cute. this could possibly work as a short term heel run where she plays up this cute thing to get heat and then is a deadly assassin type wrestler but she's bad in the ring and somehow gets cheered."

[10.0] "Wonderful. Maki Itoh is an excellent wrestler who puts her heart into it when she enters the ring. She is pure charisma, talent and dedication. I met her thanks to AEW and since then I've followed her career."

[8.0] "I've held off on rating Maki for awhile, because I wanted to see her settle into her groove before doing so. She's become legitimately good in the ring, has charisma for days, knows how to get herself over and is unapologetically herself. Her flair and personality won't work for everyone, but it's impossible to deny how far she's come."

[8.0] "what hasnt been said about Maki Itoh, the Cutest in the World? vulgar, arrogant, and yet so charismatic and lovable."

[9.0] "One of the most charismatic wrestlers in the world, she just eats up the screen. You could almost call it a problem since I can barely pay attention to her opponents, but it's a good problem to have, not to mention her ever improving in-ring ability. Maki's a star, plain and simple."

[10.0] "The cutest wrestler in the world. Not just that, but she can kick ass as well. Maki Itoh is a very easy underdog to root for - and yet she hardly carries herself like an underdog. It's that kind of infectious personality that makes her so endearing. One of the knocks on her used to be her in-ring skills, but she has improved leaps and bounds and is now one of the very best in Tokyo Joshi Pro. Also, she has one of the highest ceilings of all joshi when it comes to international crossover appeal. Tony Khan needs to back up the Brink's truck for her ASAP."

[10.0] "Now i discovered Maki when she was in aew and was drawn to her quickly. I love her gimmick and its over as fuck to boot. She was a good wrestler at the beginning of 2021 but holy shit she has became the full package. She is probably one of the charismatic women in wrestling right now with the swear word saying fired idol gimmick i love most. She was already good in ring but is now also one of my favourite women in wrestling and my fav in TJPW. I cant wait to see what she'll do in her second reign as International Princess champion. An easy 10"

[8.0] "She's getting there. Emotional and character wise she's perfect for TJPW and would probably be absolutely lost in a promotion like Stardom. She has improved a lot in ring to back up her promo skills, but she'll never be the worker Mizuki, Miyu or Yuka are. That's not her strength and I hope she sticks to it."

[7.0] "A product of DDT/TJPW, she's a perfect fit there, getting over on her character work alone. Her wrestling resembles the skills of a punk rocker: all attitude with technique that is limited and unrefined. She's weak and doesn't have a natural command of physics. Reflexes can be slower than average and anything physically demanding may not be great, but more nuanced movements are quite good. Can be in comedic matches and serious ones to boot, laughing 70 percent of the time and crying 30. Is a natural on the mic and a very emotional/expressive performer. Comes across as very genuine, which is hard to do in wrestling. Easy to root for and the way she carries herself makes it interesting to watch, more interesting than PED-ridden charisma-vacuum fakes."

[8.0] "Maki has the charisma of a mountain, also she is a good wrestler, she delivered good matches in the 8th Princess Cup and WrestlePrincess 2, also her match against Miyu in January 4th was very good"

[9.0] "Maki Ito's performances in the Princess Cup this year prove she's more than just a gimmick. I always think that's been overstated anyway, but now it's clear."

[5.0] "I like her as a character, I really do. Unfortunately she's also a character that doesn't work too well outside of the safe confines of DDT/TJPW programming and her in-ring skills are more miss than hit."

[8.0] "Maki Ito is great, actually. Definitely character-driven, but a wrestler who is always engaging in every match she's part of, whether it be singles, tags, serious, comedy, intergender, etc. She's also someone who has improved leaps and bounds since her debut, and that doesn't look like it'll stop anytime soon."

[0.0] "Without doubt the worst wrestler I have ever seen in my life she is an absolute embarrassment her recent matches on AEW had some of the worst mic shots ever. Hopefully she finds another line of work to fail at with her wrestling career and her crap singing"

[10.0] "Maki is very expressive and entertaining in every single match she is in. Her wrestling abilities improved as well heavily over the last few years, which is why I gladly give her a rating of 10."

[6.0] "Her gimmick is fun and funny, though a bit limiting. Her in-ring isn't nearly as developed but it's passable."

[8.0] "Maki Itoh has that unwavering confidence on the mic that you can't teach, seriously quick wit, and a matchguide that exceeds her supposedly mediocre in-ring reputation massively. Her match against Miyu was one of the best matches of the year, and her singles match against hikari was very good. She's more than held her weight in several high quality tag matches. She'll surprise people in AEW."

[9.0] "Is Maki a great in-ring wrestler? No, especially compared to other Joshi wrestlers she's EXTREMELY unremarkable and sometimes straight up bad even. That said, Maki's in-ring ability is surpassed by her backstory and her storytelling since arriving in pro wrestling as well as her extremely charismatic personality. I think a lot of people have really confused her popularity being attributed to her being "cute" or really charismatic since she has had appearances for AEW when although that has really helped that isn't what got her popular to begin with and I think that hasn't been properly explained."

[3.0] "Maki Itoh is all charisma. To her credit, people seem to love her quirky personality, and finding a way to stand out amongst your peers really is the most difficult thing to do in professional wrestling; all three points of this rating are for that alone. As a worker, Maki Itoh is awful. My favourite aspect of pro-wrestling is, believe it or not, the wrestling. I am not a fan of Maki Itoh."

[10.0] "Great character. Delusional heel that believes she's a face. Acts as if she is a beloved celebrity and role model... until cornered, then she resorts to every dirty tactic in the book. Great on the mic, serious and emotionally or comedically. Great in the ring (against any girl her weight class at least). Singles & Tag wrestler. Frontman/Focus of whatever tag team. Leader of her stable. Great Entertainer. A+ social media and promo game. Well fleshed out multi-year feuds and character development. Top tier heel."

[3.0] "In my opinion her character doesnt belong on a wrestling show. It belongs on a ballet show or Halloween costume show. I need to be able to take her more seriously than a girl that acts and sounds like shes still in kindergarten"

[6.0] "Itoh is a tough individual to rate. Many factors to delve into. I think it's hard to deny that she has charisma for days. She plays up the "cute, innocent schoolgirl" schtick, but she pairs it with a "crass, unabashed, vulgar, troll" attitude. I can see how this might create a polarizing sort of character & it seems it's one of those "you either love it, or hate it" sort of dynamics. I, for one, love her character. She also uses social media well, which only adds to her intrigue. Moving beyond pure character work, her in ring is where she really falls off the rails. Being enmeshed in TJPW is doing her no favors with concern to becoming more proficient in the ring. I've never been very impressed with most anything in TJPW from a wrestling standpoint. I'm also not too entertained with the "hard head" gimmick. I've seen it so many times before & with Itoh, it is especially hard to buy into. With her recent appearance in the AEW Women's Tournament, it seems like it's only a matter of time before she starts making more waves in the western hemisphere. I only hope that once she comes over that they really invest in getting her better training that the folks in TJPW are not very concerned with."

[9.0] "After watching her shine in TJPW, DDT, and the recent AEW Women's Title Tournament, I'm content to say that Maki Ito is the most entertaining wrestler in joshi today. She's probably the best in her subgenre (joshi) at connecting with any crowd, whether it's Japanese or American. I can't wait to see more from her, especially as her in-ring ability continues to improve."

[9.0] ""Who's the cutest in the world? " Sorry Itoh-chan I would have to give that to Haruna Neko personally. However, like many other people she is one of my favourite Joshi wrestlers. Everything she does is golden. She is an entertainer and wrestling is entertainment over everything else. She is a pretty good wrestler as well even if people chose not to see it and she clearly puts the effort in in order to get better. Happy for (hopefully) a wider range of people seeing her at the big recent Korakuen Hall event with the first ever English commentary. I love her last two costumes and her entrance obviously, her Twitter nonsense is brilliant as well."

[10.0] "I love Maki. Seriously: her entrance, her look, her ring work, her crowd control - all these aspects are absolutely marvelous."