Raiden has some of the best anti-air options in the game, from what I've tested. I actually got really salty a week or so before this thread because people were playing the Mexican Jumping Bean game against me online, and it was totally working (so why would they stop?). So after getting salty, I went to the lab and set the AI to do jump ins.
My main is Liu, so I tried him out first. His D2 is Godlike. You just have to be aware of where the hitbox is versus where your hurtbox is. Catch them at the right distance in the right place, and you'll D2 them clean EVERY TIME. Then I moved on to other characters. Kano is my secondary (quickly becoming my main. I love that dirty motherfucker) and I found the same to be true with Kano, it's just that his hitbox on the D2 is in a slightly different place. This is true for the ENTIRE CAST.
BUT- some D2s have slow start up, making D2 on reaction hard to do (more so in online, my only real option on PC). Next up was Raiden. His D2 is slow, and the hitbox is more vertical than either Liu or Kano's. It's not great for jump-ins. It works, but the timing is more strict. You know what it's great for, though? Cross overs. It's FANTASTIC for crossovers. The vertical hitbox means autocorrect doesn't fuck you most of the time. Seriously. Try it.
Then I moved on to Raiden's other options. Standing 1 works at basically the same ranges and timings that Liu and Kano's D2 work at. Bonus is that B1 is also good at the same range, so it's harder to screw yourself with input error if you're backing up for spacing. Plus standing 1 starts a combo string that you can start your air juggle. Nice, eh? Raiden has 2 non-ex special moves that specifically target air, you just have to time them right so they don't trade. If you don't feel like risking it, then just back up and superman them on trip guard. This works better than Kano ball, even though the moves seem similar at first glace. I think the hurtbox for Raiden in his superman is smaller? Also, I know you don't like the NJP for anti-air in the discussion, but it's SO GOOD and you can totally do it on reaction with plenty of wiggle room.
Anyway, my point is this: I'm not a great player. I come to TYM to learn how to be decent and I'm working on it. (shout out to
@Derptile and
@countrypistol for their amazing guides) I didn't play MK9 or Injustice, so I'm not conditioned to Godlike anti-air options all the time, every time. All I am is a mediocre player that jumped in the lab for an hour to figure out my options, and I brush up in practice. There are options all over the place, and they're all really good ones. Just go find them. I promise you that they're there.
My reward for this is to play Liu Kang and spam low fireballs to bait the jump ins, and then D2ing them over and over. I've had several rage quits from doing this. *shit eating grin*
[edit] Also, just to add from going into the lab right now:
Kano has instant air kano balls. (Like Liu's iafb). If you want an "I WIN" button for anti-air, well that's it. Go ahead and practice it. It pretty much wins all anti-air battles out right at close distances, and all but the latest timings. (Like, don't Kano ball into their already outstretched foot). Just looking at all of Kano's anti-air options- great D2, Air Kano Balls (including instant), armored up ball, armored regular ball (canceled into combo), supreme forward & back dashes.
I imagine against a good Kano player that's put lab time into anti-airing, that basically you would only jump in on them as a sign of disrespect. When Kano is on point, he'll blow up your air attack every time and the only question is if he wants to spend a bar to make you eat a juggle combo for it.
