All aircraft design is a compromise, surely.
And even defining "good" handling is very difficult. If you ask me as a flight safety boffin to define safe handling characteristics unlikely to lead a loss of control, and then ask me as a chap who enjoys his flying what characteristics I'd like to see, you're likely to get different answers.
Similarly, overly light pitch control that makes accurate control difficult is typically a result of a very aft CG - whilst at the same time improving cruise performance and reducing stall speed.
So, "Good" handling is in my opinion an impossible thing to define, as the specifics of handling qualities are just another feature of the complex set of compromises that are what aircraft design is all about.
G