mamey2422

Unfortunately, I see Aspyn following Meri’s path. Meri said she was open to plural marriage because she was in love with Kody and knew that was important to him, maybe hoping when they were married that he would let go of the calling. But he didn’t and Meri became more jealous and bitter with each new wife. Neither Meri nor Aspyn dated anyone else. They set their eyes on Kody/Mitch and hung their happiness there. Mitch seems to have strong faith in the polygamous lifestyle and I could see him eventually converting Aspyn.

ITA. I noticed this during the lunch with Mitch’s mom. Mitch’s mom said being single affords her a lot of freedom to travel and Robyn chimed in with “why not bring your husband.” She must have forgotten how upset the sister wives were about her honeymoon. Robyn also said on the couch that she sees Mitch’s mom as lonely with no family when everyone else sees a happy fulfilled woman. I wonder how Robyn would have fared as a first sister wife. Her point of view would probably be very different.

Has this been confirmed? Kody looks handsome in the photos they sometimes show of him younger and earlier into his marriages. You can see a lot of him in Janelle's boys (Logan, Hunter). The man-bun-pony do him no favors. One small thing I haven't seen mentioned was Meri acknowledging that she acts differently around her friends than she does around her family and she doesn't like that about herself. I think that's the first time she's ever admitted she could be doing more to improve her family relationships.

I think this common in Mormon culture. An acquaintance of mine is Mormon and when his daughter was getting married he described it in a similar fashion. There is a private function for family and then a more casual open-ended “reception” for friends and distant family. He was hosting the reception in his backyard so I asked him how he would fit everyone (a few hundred people). He mentioned guests coming to the reception for a short while, just to say hello even. Guests are fluid, and not necessarily there all night. Mitch alluded to this a couple times when he said not everyone would be staying the whole time.

You've perfectly summarized the Beth/Rio dynamic! Couldn't have said it better. It's sexual chemistry but more than that too. I like this show but Beth/Rio are what keep me coming back.

I'm so glad I'm not the only one who's on the Beth/Rio train. I posted on another episode discussion that I ship Beth and Rio not because they're good people or good for each other but they have amazing chemistry on screen and are both super attractive. Beth and Rio on screen together are my favorite part of the show. As I watched, I found myself hoping for them to have a scene together. I gathered from an interview with the show's creator that a romantic dynamic between Beth and Rio was not in the original story line but a byproduct of the actor's chemistry with each other. Here's the excerpt:

ITA. I do ship Beth and Rio - not because they're good people or good for each other but they have amazing chemistry on screen and are both super attractive. Beth and Rio on screen together are my favorite parts of the show. I think Beth shoots Rio but it's only a flesh wound. Off to go find some Beth/Rio fanfic LOL.

I thought this article offered a good perspective of what it’s like to be in a MLM business like Meri is in with LuLaRoe. It is not a pretty picture. How Women Are Fighting the Marketers That Nearly Ruined Them A couple of highlights: “Even at the most legitimate MLMs, like Amway, the odds of making a profit are infinitesimal.” I 100% believe Meri is in debt with her LLR business and probably hiding the severity of it from Kody and the SWs. Also, the Browns really have no business sense. “These companies prey on people who are looking for community and looking for somewhere to belong.” Meri was prime for the taking by LLR. “These MLMs cut you off from everybody,” Young said. “They tell you that if someone is being negative about your journey or ‘business venture’ to block them immediately and cut them off from your life. They tell you that ‘you don’t need negative people in your life.’ They say that instead of listening to people you love and hearing them out, just block them.” Meri fits right in.

I thought Meri’s antectdote about dealing with a “hater” in person was so passive aggressive. OF COURSE, she chose a story that showcased her martyrdom (divorcing Kody so he could adopt Robyn’s kids) and one where The person has “not nice” things to say about Kody. Major eye roll. I don’t see any hope for Kody and Meri. I don’t think Meri will ever leave and Kody has totally checked out. I liked the flashbacks only to see the transformations - good and bad.

Whitney: I don’t think she does anything other than BGDC and the show. Buddy: No. Said on the Tell All that he hasn’t worked in 6 months. Heather: Yes. I follow her on Instagram and she posts some work-related stuff. She has some sort of writing/editing job. She does a couple things on the side too, like Shipt. Ashley: Yes. She mentioned on Instagram how hard it was to leave her baby to go back to work and posts some work photos. I think it’s a customer service role for a utility or phone company Tal: Yes. He said he’s a counselor in the addiction/recovery field. Todd: No idea. Glenn: Yes though I can’t remember what he does for a living. Babs: No, I think she’s been a stay at home mom since she had kids.

I wonder how the kids feel about this? Hopefully it's addressed in their portion of the tell-all. You can see the kids have connections to their non-biological moms. Maddie wanted Christine around for her labor. Mariah invited Janelle to the women's march because she'd been a feminist role model for her (must have killed Meri, BTW). But I don't recall any of the kids connecting with Meri in this way so maybe her lack of desire to "parent" them is already a non-issue for them. I haven't read the book so my comment was based on what's been said on the show which is that the "conflict" between Meri and Janelle after Janelle married Kody was an "abusive" situation and Janelle had enough. Janelle alluded to this in the tell-all when she mentioned they didn't know how to manage conflict with their opposite personality types. I wasn't aware that Janelle had post-pardum depression and could her mental health being a reason for leaving. But I think her decision to leave was 80% Meri and 20% other factors. Meri has shown nothing but nastiness toward Janelle and I can only imagine what she was like when Janelle first joined and there were no cameras around.

Robyn joined the family 7-8 years ago when the show started. I wonder what was happening the 2-3 years before that started their problems.

I think an interesting dynamic with Meri is that her biggest issue is with Kody, not a sisterwife. Sisterwife relationships being fractured seem common in polygamous families, and certainly so for the Browns. Janelle knows about that - Meri was the reason she left the family, not Kody. The husband/wife relationship being so fractured seems unusual, especially to the extent of Meri/Kody. One question that I liked from the interviewer was when she asked Meri if her and Janelle’s issues germinated from Meri having Kody to herself for a few years. I would have liked some follow up, but I thought it as a good question and a topic that has come up in these boards too. @SuzieQ Tony works at a bank. At least he did before they got married, which is how he knew to suggest to Kody to take a home equity loan to pay for their wedding. ?

Has anyone ever acknowledged why Meri and Kody’s relationship is “platonic”? We know it’s because of the Catfish but I don’t think it’s ever been addressed on the show. In fact, after the catfish season I remember Kody kind of minimized it.

ITA. Robyn and Christine both checked-in with Maddie to see how she was doing. They were sensitive about not overstepping bounds but let Maddie know they were there for her and demonstrated that with actions (staying with her in the bathroom, reaching out when she first started getting contractions). I thought it was very sweet how everyone ended up being in the room, with Maddie’s permission. With the exception of Kody. I would NOT want my dad involved in that with me. It it would have been easy enough for Meri to reach out to Maddie, letting her know what she’d like her involvement to be - or what it could be if she had obligations. “I know you don’t want everyone around for the birth but I’ll be around and can help with XYZ and will check in with you at ABC.” Did anyone else pick up on Meri’s obnoxious tone of voice when they decided to play a board game to help pass time? Meri was somewhat patronizing. I can’t stand her. I loved feisty Janelle and honest Christine. Meri can dish it out but she can’t take it.