A while ago, there was a thread titled Top 10 Female Japanese Skaters of All Time , which I thought was pretty interesting. I didn't recall seeing a thread for Japanese male skaters, so I thought it would be good to start a thread where people can talk about their favorite Japanese skaters, past and present. 
Here are my favorite Japanese skaters broken down by gender:
Ladies
1) Mao Asada
Before becoming a fan of Mao, I wasn't that interested in Japanese skaters. They had good basics and jumps, but their performances didn't hold my attention.
Mao changed all of that. Her combination of grace, beauty, and power was captivating. It was thanks to her that I grew to move away from the favorable bias I had for North American skaters at that time and become more interested in Asian skaters in general.
2) Yukina Ota
I discovered Yukina's skating in retrospect on Youtube, long after she retired from the sport. I loved her performance to Daphnis et Chloe at the 2004 4CC competition. In my opinion, Yukina and Mao were the most artistic skaters to come out of Japan. It's unfortunate that Yukina struggled on the technical side and injuries sidelined her career. She was such a beautiful skater.
3) Akiko Suzuki
It's difficult to not love Akiko's skating because she skates with such joy and emotion. Her personal story is equally compelling. She is a role model for a skater who was able to overcome her personal struggles to achieve longevity in this sport.
4) Midori Ito
Midori was a trailblazer and arguably still the best jumper this sport has ever seen. She would be at or near the top of a "best" list, but this is more of a personal favorites list. I admire and more in awe of Midori than love her skating. To me, she was amazing from a pure athletic viewpoint, charismatic, but not as artistic as the three skaters mentioned above.
Honorable Mentions
Rika Kihira
I prefer Rika to the more popular Marin Honda. She combines high athleticism with the pure joy of skating. I wish Rika was the one to move abroad and change coaches, because I don't think Hamada's school of skating and the choreography given to her best suit her style and personality.
Men
1) Daisuke Takahashi
Hanyu may be King, but Daisuke is still my favorite Japanese male skater, and probably male skater in general for the past decade or so. His collaboration with Pasquale Camerlengo produced several amazing programs. His commitment to choreography and performance were second to none.
2) Shoma Uno
It is hard not to root for Shoma when his idol is Daisuke and his inspiration to start figure skating was Mao.
Shoma has a lot of charisma and power in his skating. I am a bit disappointed that he seemed to focus more on the technical side over the artistry/performance in past couple of seasons. Hopefully, now that he has an Olympic medal, he will focus more on developing his artistry and become a great performer like his idol Daisuke.
3) Yuzuru Hanyu
With two OGMs, Yuzuru is undoubtedly the greatest competitor and most successful skater to come out of Japan. Like Midori, I admire more than love his skating. Romeo and Juliet version 1.0 remains my favorite program of his. In my opinion, he grew in confidence over the years but lost some of the raw passion and intensity that I saw in that program. Nonetheless, he is an extraordinary skater and athlete, so deserves a place on this list.
Here are my favorite Japanese skaters broken down by gender:
Ladies
1) Mao Asada
Before becoming a fan of Mao, I wasn't that interested in Japanese skaters. They had good basics and jumps, but their performances didn't hold my attention.
Mao changed all of that. Her combination of grace, beauty, and power was captivating. It was thanks to her that I grew to move away from the favorable bias I had for North American skaters at that time and become more interested in Asian skaters in general.
2) Yukina Ota
I discovered Yukina's skating in retrospect on Youtube, long after she retired from the sport. I loved her performance to Daphnis et Chloe at the 2004 4CC competition. In my opinion, Yukina and Mao were the most artistic skaters to come out of Japan. It's unfortunate that Yukina struggled on the technical side and injuries sidelined her career. She was such a beautiful skater.
3) Akiko Suzuki
It's difficult to not love Akiko's skating because she skates with such joy and emotion. Her personal story is equally compelling. She is a role model for a skater who was able to overcome her personal struggles to achieve longevity in this sport.
4) Midori Ito
Midori was a trailblazer and arguably still the best jumper this sport has ever seen. She would be at or near the top of a "best" list, but this is more of a personal favorites list. I admire and more in awe of Midori than love her skating. To me, she was amazing from a pure athletic viewpoint, charismatic, but not as artistic as the three skaters mentioned above.
Honorable Mentions
Rika Kihira
I prefer Rika to the more popular Marin Honda. She combines high athleticism with the pure joy of skating. I wish Rika was the one to move abroad and change coaches, because I don't think Hamada's school of skating and the choreography given to her best suit her style and personality.
Men
1) Daisuke Takahashi
Hanyu may be King, but Daisuke is still my favorite Japanese male skater, and probably male skater in general for the past decade or so. His collaboration with Pasquale Camerlengo produced several amazing programs. His commitment to choreography and performance were second to none.
2) Shoma Uno
It is hard not to root for Shoma when his idol is Daisuke and his inspiration to start figure skating was Mao.
Shoma has a lot of charisma and power in his skating. I am a bit disappointed that he seemed to focus more on the technical side over the artistry/performance in past couple of seasons. Hopefully, now that he has an Olympic medal, he will focus more on developing his artistry and become a great performer like his idol Daisuke. 3) Yuzuru Hanyu
With two OGMs, Yuzuru is undoubtedly the greatest competitor and most successful skater to come out of Japan. Like Midori, I admire more than love his skating. Romeo and Juliet version 1.0 remains my favorite program of his. In my opinion, he grew in confidence over the years but lost some of the raw passion and intensity that I saw in that program. Nonetheless, he is an extraordinary skater and athlete, so deserves a place on this list.
It is difficult to choose my favorites but : 
