Personally, Kanny, I prefer Xzar. But I do like Xzar and Monty as a team whether they like each other or not. But, as you already know, I have a love for evil mages (Eddie Eddie Eddie!!!!)
Gee, mayhap I just don't inderstand mages well enough, being a berserker, ya know. And I think in reality Xzar and Monty quite like each other, but they'll never say it with that "evils can't have friends because it's a weakness" thing. In our party Montaron was my best friend, while Xzar was kind of a "party's child" and we all were taking care of him, when his mind... rested. Now I can Console Xzar in SoA, but my Monty, my closest friend, is dead. Horribly infair, I say! That why I'm so impatient with this MOD, though I don't like quest-MODs and new NPCs at all.
I still suggest a Kido-Montaron combination then... Would be very alike the old days then. Though one child grew selfish and went away, you now have got a new one with some similar personality traits.