Kokonoe:
Not much needs to be said. High damage, excellent screen control, excellent corner carry, excellent pressure, excellent setplay, and the potential to steal rounds with G.Tager and Black Hole. Struggles against rushdown, but she still has ways to escape pressure. Doesn't really lose to anyone, and not only is the definite number 1 character in the game, but still has a lot of potential to improve.

Valkenhayn:
I think that before Kokonoe was released, Valkenhayn was the best character in CP 1.0. He practically has no disadvantage matchups besides a slight disadvantage to Kokonoe. Outside of going even with Litchi, he beats every other character in the cast clean. His damage isn't exactly high, but his corner carry, mixup, and neutral game are so powerful, that it doesn't matter. Many characters are forced to constantly take large risks against him, while he can play relatively safe, run his gameplan, and win. His only weakness lies in his poor defensive options.

Litchi:
One of the most versatile characters in the game. In the hand of an experienced player, this character will have extremely strong pressure and a dominating neutral game. Her excellent conversion ability compensates for her weakened setplay, and even then it is still quite good. Daisharin is the best OD in the game, as it can be used for mixup, as a reversal, and can help her do explosive damage to close a round. She only outright loses to Kokonoe. Reversal Daisharin compensates for the lack of a strong staffless reversal (ALl Terminals is not that good of a reversal, imo). She can struggle with jump-ins occasionally, and that her staff pressure is relatively linear. It can also be quite difficult for her to convert compared to other characters. That being said, her weaknesses pale compared to her strengths.

Taokaka:
Despite having reduced movement options compared to previous versions, this character is still very threatening in CP 1.0. Her neutral game and ability to convert random hits into high damage, corner carrying combos is still quite good, and her mixups are better considering she can knockdown opponents consistently in the corner. Her pressure is strong as well, and the opponent usually has to take quite a risk to try to escape. However, Taokaka has quite low health. She does have HexaEdge as a reversal, but a bad guess can leave her in a rough spot. Despite that, she dominates a lot of characters in this version of the game.

Hazama:
Hazama runs circles around most of the cast. Like other top tier characters, he converts very well, has a strong neutral game, and very strong pressure. He really only has problems against other top tier characters (specifically, Kokonoe, Taokaka, and Valkenhayn) - outside of that, he does fine in all of his matchups.

Rachel:
I think Rachel is top/close to top tier in CP 1.0. It is difficult to think of what characters she could lose to, outside of other top tiers. She converts well, has an extremely strong neutral game, and has unseeable high/low mixups. Damage, as seen with Valkenhayn, is not always a factor - it's the momentum she gets to keep on hit or block. On defense, even though cat chair isn't the strongest defensive option, it is hard/impossible to jump cancel to continue pressure thanks to 6A, and a lot of characters have to change how they handle oki against her because of wind tech. She's an all around strong character.

Hakumen:
Hakumen is quite good in CP 1.0. Compared to Extend, some of his tools were weakened, but I feel that his maximum damage output, combined with his higher than average health, make him threatening at all times. Combined with passive meter gain (ie, he gains meter from doing nothing), and various ways to convert random hits into high damage, this character is still quite threatening. He does have a step dash, but cutting projectiles helps him against zoners. That being said, he has some difficulty against the characters above him, and relies quite a bit on his damage output to take wins from them.

Azrael:
Azrael is the strongest newcomer in the arcade version of CP 1.0. He strikes me as a stronger Kanji - not exactly fast, and not difficult to zone, but still difficult to approach. Once he gets started, his momentum is overwhelming and he can close rounds quickly. Growler is indeed unsafe on NORMAL hit, but on the plus side, since it absorbs projectles, it defends him against many types of offense and zoning found in Blazblue. His main weakness is indeed how easy it is for the top tier characters to zone him out.

Mu:
Mu is probably the strongest underplayed character in this game. Her neutral game is easy and effective, her setplay is quite good, she gets to convert combos in ways a lot of characters wish they could (j2C), and her DP being invulnerable and having frame 1 guard point outright protects her from safe jumps (to my knowledge). Thanks to her neutral game, she actually does quite well in neutral against some of the top characters. However, I feel that she posseses some weaknesses in her offense, and she can also be whiffed punished easier than most characters in the game.

Jin:
Jin is one of the two "border characters" in this game - as in, he is one of the two characters that draw a distinct line between the stronger and weaker characters in this game. He can cleanly beat characters weaker than him, but definitely struggles against the characters above him. His pressure is strong, and he has good defensive options, but his overall mixup, on average, is weak.

Ragna:
The other border character in this game. Ragna is well rounded, and just like Jin, cleanly beats everyone under him. Since his neutral game is average, he struggles against the characters above him, since either they have excellent zoning, movement ability, or some combination of both. His offense is overall not the best, but his mixup is better than Jin's most of the time. Inferno Divider is an excellent defensive tool that the opponent must be conscious of at all times.

Noel:
The strongest character in the lower half of the cast. Noel is quite good at converting, has good pressure, and a decent neutral game, but against a prepared opponent, she can be helpless on defense. She is very high risk/high return, which is definitely not a point of strength in BBCP, where all the strongest characters can run their gameplans very safely.

Arakune:
Reduction of movement options and a weaker curse game really hold him back, by design. His gameplan is essentially to try to steal rounds using curse. OD helps with this a lot. All in all, he's not bad - it's just that he's most effective in curse, which he has to work hard to get. The top characters can deny curse by playing a safe neutral game. He has an extremely difficult time against zoning characters in general, and it doesn't help that most zoners also have very good rushdown games. In any case, he can turn rounds around with one hit, so he still has the potential to win rounds.

Platinum:
Platinum actually got a few interesting new tools in BBCP, but in the end, the random factor of items is still a definite weakness. The counter reversal is quite good, but a lot of the stronger characters have moves that are hard knockdown, making it not an option in a spot where she needs it. Platinum's rushdown is good, but other things like mixup, defense, and neutral vary depending on the item that is currently stocked.

Terumi:
Terumi's high speed is a definite strength in this game, making it so that he can maneuver around easily. Also, his ability to build meter has no peer in BBCP. He has good air vs ground tools, and a pretty good anti-air as well. His pressure is good, but like Jin, his mixup is lacking. Also, certain points of his pressure (specifically 5D) are very unsafe on block, and most DP's and supers are fast enough to punish 100% on IB. He can convert hits well, but sometimes he doesn't get much damage and corner carry. His Counter Assault is also one of the worst CA's in the game, imo. He relies a lot on keeping momentum.

Nu:
Nu got interesting changes in BBCP, but a lot of them hold her back. Her neutral game is still good on paper, but the ability of stronger characters to clash her projectiles or maneuver around them are quite strong. Also, she can only reversal super in one mode, which definitely makes her life harder when she's defending. Her offense is good, and 4B is extremely difficult to block. Like a lot of the lower half of the cast, she needs to get started to be effective.

Tsubaki:
Like Noel, I feel like Tsubaki has to take a lot of risks, but unlike Noel, the reward is not as high. The whiff cancellable normals are both a strength and a weakness, as many of the stronger characters can punish things like 3CC or DP > dive from a safe distance. She does have strong pressure, and her command grab definitely helped another weakness of hers - the neccesity of stocks for her gameplan. Tsubaki's conversion ability is pretty good, and her corner carry/sideswap ability is good as well.

Bang:
FRKZ being OD only is a huge blow to Bang's game, in my opinion. The D nail change hurts his offense as well, but I've seen Bang players adjust to the change, and still use it in pressure. His mobility is good, but his long forward airdash allows opponents to reposition themselves on the ground easily. His corner carry is good, and he is intimidating when he corners you. Daifunka is actually a pretty good reversal, but his drives this time are not that good, which is a huge blow to his defense.

Amane:
I feel like even though Amane has a good neutral game, he doesn't have as much freedom of movement as stronger movement characters, which gives him problems in certain matchups. His mixup is lacking, but it doesn't matter that much since his goal is to make you block the drill. He's another character that's hard to balance, because I think it'd be easy to make him really strong....

Izayoi:
This character's biggest weakness is in Gain Art. Pretty much, her normal mode is supposed to be honest, and then Gain Art is supposed to make her crazy, but her linear movement is a huge weakness in this game. Her conversion ability is all right, but not consistent. Pretty much, she's a one chance character.

Makoto:
The most honset character in the game. If you lose to Makoto, it's your fault.

Kagura:
My opinion on Kagura has fluctuated quite a bit. At this point, I don't think he's the outright worst character, but I still think he has a bunch of flaws. His DP is an equalizer, but a lot of the strong characters can zone him out, and mix him up safely. His super is a very good reversal option, but I feel the stronger characters don't really care about it unless it's going to kill them. His damage output can be high, and he can turn a game around in a second, but most of the time it's him flailing around while being controlled or pinned down.

Tager:
Well, it's Tager. He actually has a lot of potential this version, and has a lot of interesting setups - but his core game is still a guessing game in which the opponent can escape, which is will forever be a huge liability in this game.

Bullet:
Bullet, like some of the other weaker characters, needs to "get started" in order to get her game plan running. If she started in Heat level 1 or something, she would be a lot better. The stronger characters dominate her in neutral until she levels up, and even then they can still zone her. Her defensive options are poor, and her rushdown is lacking without heat. She does have good damage and decent conversion ability, but in a game that is first decided by neutral, having the weakest neutral game is crippling.