I think I get what you are saying. I’ve had a few decent knives in 440C but it’s been a while. I think they held a better edge than AUS-8 and might have been a little more corrosion resistant but they did take a little more work to sharpen. Versus the low-quality 440C I’ve had lately, I’d take AUS-8 in a heartbeat. My Harnds Talisman in AUS-8 has been a real gem. Edge retention isn’t on par with some of those better budget steels I mentioned but it’s okay.
As fa as D2, it’s easy to beat in the summer because it rusts on me. 
That’s a big part of why I’ve been looking forward to Fall. For some people, it’s the Pumpkin Spice or the changing leaves. For me, it’s the Bestech Texel that’s been sitting on the shelf waiting NIB since right before the first humid spell of summer.