S18.E13: The Elephant in the Room

[Scarlett45]

 Kody and Robyn reunite with Janelle and Christine on a family video call to reveal the gender of Mykelti's twins; in Parowan, Meri continues to struggle with the decision about her marriage; Christine and Janelle head out on a road trip to Idaho.

 

Air Date: November 12, 2023

 

Reminder- the episode thread is for discussion of events of the episode. Discussion of real time information is considered a spoiler and belongs in participants/social media threads. 

[VioletNevermind]

Wow.  Spending a Sunday night watching some jackass try to cram his vehicle into another vehicle and his jackass ex-wife remodel an outbuilding (pardon me, the carriage house) really makes a girl reevaluate her life choices.  It’s been a minute since I’ve posted here, but I hate these people more than ever.

Robyn deserves some sort of national recognition for the game she has run on every single member of this family- children and adults.  She can mug for the camera all she wants and talk about how “hurt” she is about every fucking thing, but nothing will convince me that she didn’t know what she was doing, pretty much from the beginning.  It’s as if she zeroed in, identified the weaknesses, and capitalized on them.  I want nothing more for her than for Kody to meet some sweet young thang 10 years her junior and incorporate her and her young children into their supposedly plural family.  We might actually see some real tears then, not just the forced grimacing and phony sobbing.

I’m glad that Christine can play the role of mentor for Janelle as she navigates her departure from this shitstorm.  I hope to God that Janelle decides not to build on that stupid land.  Just gather whatever you can and get the hell out of there so you can start the second half of your life.  Both she and Christine deserve happiness and they won’t find it anywhere near Kody and his wife.  Ditto for the kids.  It’s not easy to separate yourself from a parent and I applaud the older kids for holding firm and drawing boundaries after being disrespected and disregarded for so long.  Imagine being a young adult and watching your own father tell a national audience that he is literally choosing a woman over having any sort of relationship with you.  My heart goes out to them.  Beneath the youthful bravado and stiff upper lips are some very hurt kids.

As for Meri, she’s reaping exactly what she sowed way back when.  Karma’s a bitch, ain’t it, Meri?

Edited November 13, 2023 by VioletNevermind

[General Days]

From @Orcinus orca in the Live Chat thread:

Quote

Is Kootie using Mormon math? Five people can't each own 25% of the property.

When Christine left, she traded her share of Coyote Pass for the family's share in her home (funds from Meri and Janelle's sale of their Vegas properties helped to fund Christine's purchase of her Flagstaff home and the purchase of Robyn's McMansion).

Meanwhile, Coyote Pass, as they bought it, is/was only four lots. Christine is out of the financial picture, and there are only four adults now involved in the ownership of the property.

[renatae]

I can't say how much I am enjoying these women coming to their senses one by one and leaving this entitled blowhard. I'm glad the kids still get together and enjoy each other. That's the best ending I could think of.

[TomGirl]

55 minutes ago, VioletNevermind said:

Spending a Sunday night watching some jackass try to cram his vehicle into another vehicle…

Possibly the most boring five minutes of TV in all history.  Watching static is more interesting than that.

[TexasTiffany]

We never hear Kody wrestling with the spiritual aspects of his being a bad husband. Christine, Janelle, and Meri all bring up how hard it is/was to figure out how they feel about eternal togetherness. It never enters Kody's mind. 

In one sentence he's wondering why Janelle isn't wanting him back. The next sentence he's wondering why Meri is still hanging around. I've been waiting for Kody's nose to be rubbed into the shit he's made. 

I hope his children leave him far behind. Kody isn't an acceptable father. He was only a sperm donor. 

[ladyscorpio]

What I don't understand is why Janelle was saying that Christine introduced her to her boyfriend Kody, when in fact Janelle was married to Meri's brother before Christine was with Kody!! So Janelle already knew Kody because she was Meri's sister-in-law. Why the hell are they skipping over that and pretending it didn't happen?? It's weird. Kody is such a dick, he's worried about seeing his kids on camera. Aurora saying Sobbyn has been one of the biggest cheerleaders for Kody having healthy relationships with the other kids and wives, what mom is she talking about?? It can't be the same Sobbyn we've seen for the past 18 seasons!! Sobbyn saying when the other kids on camera sees their "smiles" they will know Sobbyn is not the bad guy.....umm okkk. Those were smiles??? She is so delusional. Also at the end of the show, where it's showing next Sunday's episode, Sobbyn couldn't even speak right when Meri was telling her and Kody that  it's not fair for her to stay there alone,  Sobbyn burst out in her fake blubbering voice, sounding just like the teacher on Charlie Brown. That was pathetic!! I don't understand why Janelle is so confused about just  leaving  Kody, they're not legally married and she said herself that she hasn't went to her church in a really long time. Kody ghosted her, Meri and Christine ever since Sobbyn entered the picture with not a care in the world. She should do the same. Well actually she finally did because this show is way behind, but all three wives should've left him years ago.

[Elodia]

1 hour ago, TexasTiffany said:

We never hear Kody wrestling with the spiritual aspects of his being a bad husband.

That's because he doesn't see himself as a bad husband. He is flawless, and, of course, it's all Christine's fault. Or that of his children. 🙄😉 

[surfgirl]

Douche: "We need three more inches."

Us: "That's what she said, and she said, and she said."

[Joan of Argh]

I seriously can’t stand Mykelti, she’s a dumbass moron who’s helping Robyn to continue to diss Christine… ugh!

Kidney and Crybrows will dump Mykelti’s stupid ass in a new York minute as soon as she’s no longer of any use.

and what’s up with AROARa?               
she talks like a robot and not a very smart one at that!… her little speech had Crybrows hands all over it!… it was so obvious 🙄

[js9548]

Could someone explain the fact Kody has not been to Janelle's apartment in 10 months? Janelee says he came over to see the place, does that not count? I guess I do not understand the difference between seeing the new apartment and coming over. 

 

Also I was actually hoping we were moving the timeline ahead 10 months from last week's episode. Will this ever end?

[ginger90]

28 minutes ago, js9548 said:

Could someone explain the fact Kody has not been to Janelle's apartment in 10 months? Janelee says he came over to see the place, does that not count? I guess I do not understand the difference between seeing the new apartment and coming over. 

 

Also I was actually hoping we were moving the timeline ahead 10 months from last week's episode. Will this ever end?

I believe it was that Kody hadn’t spent the night in 10 months.

[General Days]

6 hours ago, ladyscorpio said:

What I don't understand is why Janelle was saying that Christine introduced her to her boyfriend Kody, when in fact Janelle was married to Meri's brother before Christine was with Kody!! So Janelle already knew Kody because she was Meri's sister-in-law. Why the hell are they skipping over that and pretending it didn't happen?? It's weird

 

Janelle didn't say Christine introduced her to her boyfriend Kody. Janelle framed herself as a friend of Meri's family, and said that Meri introduced her to boyfriend Kody.

I agree with the rest of your criticism on this point. Janelle's fuzzing up the facts just makes her look like a dishonest broker.

Not only do we all know Janelle was first married to Meri's (now recently deceased) brother, Adam, it has been spoken of on the show at least once, but most of the time, Janelle pretends she was just a family friend. She also pretends she was at Meri and Kody's wedding as just a family friend. 

Janelle likes to frame herself as non-confrontational, but in skimming through their book, and even just watching her over the seasons on Sister Wives, she also struck me as passive-aggressive and sneaky. 

 

Quote

Aurora saying Sobbyn has been one of the biggest cheerleaders for Kody having healthy relationships with the other kids and wives, what mom is she talking about?? It can't be the same Sobbyn we've seen for the past 18 seasons!!

 

I have a lot of sympathy for Robyn's kids (and for all of the Brown's kids). Robyn is Aurora's mom. Think of all the b.s. Robyn has spewed on this show over the years in an attempt to manipulate people into thinking she is the one trying to fix the family, and that she's the great communicator, and that she's the one who wants to sit on the porch with her SOB sister wives and their kids SOB and grandkids. Aurora just believes Robyn's schtick, because Robyn is her mom. I'm sure Robyn has convinced her own self of her own schtick, too. 

 

Quote

I don't understand why Janelle is so confused about just leaving Kody, they're not legally married and she said herself that she hasn't went to her church in a really long time. Kody ghosted her, Meri and Christine ever since Sobbyn entered the picture with not a care in the world. She should do the same. Well actually she finally did because this show is way behind, but all three wives should've left him years ago.

 

Janelle hasn't gone to church, but that's because they moved away from their very small, very fringe church. It's not like there's an AUB meeting house in every town.

Janelle might be something of a cafeteria Mormon fundamentalist, but she still believes in the basic worldview. Her marital status to a Mormon fundamentalist man holds in the keys — in Janelle's eyes — to her eternal fate, including the level of heaven she can attain, as well as whether or not she'll be reunited with her children, and her mother, in the afterlife.

To Janelle's understanding, "divorcing" Kody isn't just about freeing herself from a malignant narcissist who mistreats her, her sister wives, and their children. To Janelle, it's about Forever. 

[juicyfruit]

Why was Mykelti pretending to still be pregnant in her TH? She and Tony lost all the weight after she gave birth right?  Having a pillow stuffed into her pants and doing the pregnant belly rub was just weird.

[MsMalin]

For a minute there last night I thought I was watching The Walking Dead. I'm talking about Robyns daughters. I have never seen 2 more miserable young women in my life.

And again with serial killer Tony. No thanks to his giving out dating advice.

Very pretty hair on many of the women, even the 2 walking dead.

Pretty much a nothing show.

Would that little van be able to support the weight of the car?

[NoWhammies]

I have no sense of spatial relations and I was watching the show on an 11" laptop screen with 58-year-old eyes, and even I could see that car wasn't going to fit in that trailer. Morons.

I thought Robyn looked genuinely anxious on the Zoom call. It's uncomfortable to watch your chickens come home to roost. 

Please, show, less of Tony. A) he's gross. B) I can't understand what he says because he's a mush mouth. C) Mykelti married her father (and also is her father). 

Thank goodness we're finally getting the season finale next week. I'd be okay if it was the series finale. 

[General Days]

7 minutes ago, juicyfruit said:

Why was Mykelti pretending to still be pregnant in her TH? She and Tony lost all the weight after she gave birth right?  Having a pillow stuffed into her pants and doing the pregnant belly rub was just weird.

It's so dumb, isn't it? I believe it is production-dictated. They also put a pregnancy pillow on Robyn for couch segments (or maybe even a Tell-All episode) after the birth of either Solomon or Ariella (I can't recall which). 

The production does it to hide how far behind they are, and how long it takes between filming the sort of candid reality scenes and the interview segments. Basically, the production is covering up its lack of a work ethic.

That the candid reality scenes are neither candid nor real is neither here nor there, but they're low on both candor and reality.

[Orcinus orca]

8 minutes ago, General Days said:

That the candid reality scenes are neither candid nor real is neither here nor there, but they're low on both candor and reality.

The biggest problem is that the entire hour is filled with absolutely nothing.  They have run out of ideas, even producer driven.  This turkey is done, time to call it quits.

[mythoughtis]

Wait … the season finale is next week?   But, they just now got to the end of summer 2022.  They didn’t even cover a full year.  They are still over a year behind.  Janelle mentioned Savannah had just started back to school. 

Kody is incapable of practically anything.  Claims to be car lover, but can’t figure out how big of a trailer he needs for a car?   His friend sells cars, but can’t either?   

 Janelle has decided her earthly marriage is done.  She just can’t figure out whether she wants to( or can) break the eternal connection that she believes in.  Meri is struggling with that too. Christine isn’t because she no longer believes that particular tenet. Kody doesn’t seem to either.  Robyn pretends to- but she’s never once actually lived up to her polygamous beliefs.   

Robyn’s girls look miserable.  If they are hurting so bad and miss their siblings, why weren’t they on the zoom call? 
 
I am not someone that thinks adult children get to dictate their parent’s partners,   but there are occasions where they know better than their parents. Kody’s OG children are correct about Robyn, and correct about Kody.   He has abandoned them, treats them with contempt( not the other way around).  He doesn’t deserve relationships with them. 

Edited November 13, 2023 by mythoughtis

[altopower]

11 minutes ago, mythoughtis said:

Janelle has decided her earthly marriage is done.  She just can’t figure out whether she wants to( or can) break the eternal connection that she believes in.  Meri is struggling with that too. Christine isn’t because she no longer believes that particular tenet. Kody doesn’t seem to either.  Robyn pretends to- but she’s never once actually lived up to her polygamous beliefs.   

Exactly. We may not agree with the eternal connection part but it was a commitment they all made while active church members. I actually respect Janelle and Meri needing to work it out while accepting that the earthly marriages are done. Does Christine still believe in plural marriage, just not for her?  I'm not sure Kody believes in anything except loyalty and patriarchy. He never mentions anything spiritual at all. 

[Shelbie]

Once again Kody shows what a complete buffoon he is and will always be.
He has no idea how to be a father to adult children and still expects the level of adoration that small children give their daddy. Him saying he was paranoid on the zoom call meant he was afraid he was going to be called out and might have to answer some hard questions. His kids focussed rightfully on being happy to see each other and the reason they were all together.

Christine knows that the whole family will be together in the future (mostly at weddings and other celebrations) and her saying she plans on being cordial is a dignified response meaning she will give Kody and Robyn nothing to twist and rant about later.

[Granny58]

when did Kody's father embrace polygamy?  Before or after Kody did?  I was watching K last night and I had the thought that he accepted polygamy because his dad did and he never felt good enough for his dad and so wanted to do this thing to gain praise.  Kody always needs praise, even from his kids he needs adoration and LOYALTY.  It makes me wonder if his issues are rooted in problems with his dad.  Plus, the way he is positively giddy around male friends reinforced this idea for me because it is male approval (not sexual).   Not giving him a pass because adults needs to examine their motivations and history to understand their problem areas but I think he married early (meri) because Mormon, then the next 2 because daddy issues, and FINALLY met the love of his life.  

[Granny58]

I don't understand this "I saw him and I knew in my heart that we should be together" even though already married.  Ugh, that's NOT how it works.  There are rules in place so the world isn't a shit show.  If this is how it works then I would have been married to Bobby Sherman!   

1 hour ago, MsMalin said:

And again with serial killer Tony.

🤣

[goofygirl]

This ep actually knocked me out - literally!  Best little nappie I've had in a while. I'm just bored with them all.  Meri & Janelle: Get on out and be happy.  Janelle: Your ESTATE is still being formed.  You have a good paying j-o-b (apparently) and you just need to extricate yourself from Coyote Pass. PERIOD.

Douchie & Crybrows:  You are a perfectly normal American couple.  Nothing interesting or unusual about y'all.  Get off my teevee already.

[islandgal140]

Kody was selling his pride and joy and 2 other cars? Money troubles in narc paradise or just trying to raise money for the Prairie Plague Plot?

I enjoyed Kody and Robyn looking super nervous during that Zoom call. I think Kody and Robyn has some kind of folie a deux (shared psychotic disorder of 2).

Robyn looked ready to jump out of her skin during a mere zoom call, but she wanted to be invited to Christine's 50th birthday party?!!? 

So was this the 3rd time in a row we had to hear Meri tell the 32nd anniversary story. Yeah, this show isn't repetitive at all. 

Tony sounds like meatwad from Aqua Teen Hunger. Why does he love to speak inappropriately in front of mixed company and Truly? 

They were eating good at Ysabel's farewell feast - lobster, steak and crab legs! Talk about an expensive feast! I want some! Way better than 6 dry, unseasoned, and likely overcooked chicken breasts to be split among 9 people at Kody/Robyn's house for Truly's birthday "party."

I swear I am stay looking for a laser red dot during the Eeyore twins (Aurora nd Breanna) talking heads because they always look to be held at gunpoint. 

11 hours ago, General Days said:

From @Orcinus orca in the Live Chat thread:

When Christine left, she traded her share of Coyote Pass for the family's share in her home (funds from Meri and Janelle's sale of their Vegas properties helped to fund Christine's purchase of her Flagstaff home and the purchase of Robyn's McMansion).

Meanwhile, Coyote Pass, as they bought it, is/was only four lots. Christine is out of the financial picture, and there are only four adults now involved in the ownership of the property.

Janelle is well screwed when it comes to Prairie Plague Plot. She should sell it for market value to Robyn and Kody NOW. As I understand it, the plot she owns has both Kody and her name on it. I do wonder if Kody has a will or not. If he does, we all know Robyn is the sure bet to inherit the most of whatever he may own. If not, then it would be up to the laws of intestacy and the probate courts, but still Robyn as legal wife has more rights than Janelle.  If Kody should die, odds are Robyn, as his legal wife, would inherit his interests and Janelle would be stuck with that witch as co-owner.

1 hour ago, suzeecat said:

I think that the only reason we were subjected to that waste of time showing the two buffoons attempting to squeeze that stupid car into the trailer was to show just how stupid Kody is.  Gotta love production's antics, they know what we want to see!  😄

Not only is Kody stupid but so is his friend who appears to buy cars for a living and should know better. What a pair of dopes!

[Emmeline]

Aurora drank the kool aid.  I haven’t seen Robyn making any effort to keep the wives with Kody.  Her bestie was Meri and she’s barely contacted her during the last 3 years or so, even though she knew Meri was alone.  

Kody thinks the kids want to be in contact with him but not Robyn.  I think he’s got that wrong.  Many don’t like Robyn but it boils down to Kody.  No one is trying to break Kody and Robyn up, the damage is done.

 Meri’s scenes are pretty boring.  Christine & Janelle rely on their kids for subject matter and Meri doesn’t.  Im not a big Meri fan but does anyone know what she did that none of the kids seem to care?  I’ve seen enough of Tony and Mykelti during this season.

[altopower]

16 minutes ago, Emmeline said:

Meri’s scenes are pretty boring.  Christine & Janelle rely on their kids for subject matter and Meri doesn’t.

Meri has a fun fun life in Parowan and with her LulaRot and travels to Disneyland. Can't forget those. But she's been in rut of knowing her relationship with Kody was in the toilet but hanging on for YEARS. Her child doesn't want to be filmed and possibly not even mentioned (not sure if there is an agreement about that or if Meri just doesn't out of respect for them). But as a result, everything she is shown doing we've seen many times before. 

Christine and Janelle have fresher content with the decisions to move on from the plural marriage, though with the stupid way the show manages the timeline, we keep seeing the same events/subjects done to death. 

The whole thing is boring. But I'm happy that Janelle is on her way out.

[JoannKBC]

Funny edit from production, having Robyn say in voiceover, about the Zoom call, "I wanted all the kids to see me smiling and wishing everyone well," while playing video of her glowering and looking annoyed on the actual Zoom call.

[MaryMitch]

I stopped watching this show when they were in Las Vegas, and picked it back up for this season when I read about all the wives leaving. I was expecting real DRAH-MAH, but it's just annoying. How can these people be on television and still be so self-unaware?

[ladyscorpio]

2 hours ago, Granny58 said:

when did Kody's father embrace polygamy?  Before or after Kody did?  I was watching K last night and I had the thought that he accepted polygamy because his dad did and he never felt good enough for his dad and so wanted to do this thing to gain praise.  Kody always needs praise, even from his kids he needs adoration and LOYALTY.  It makes me wonder if his issues are rooted in problems with his dad.  Plus, the way he is positively giddy around male friends reinforced this idea for me because it is male approval (not sexual).   Not giving him a pass because adults needs to examine their motivations and history to understand their problem areas but I think he married early (meri) because Mormon, then the next 2 because daddy issues, and FINALLY met the love of his life.  

https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/sister-wives-insides-kody-browns-daddy-issues-kodys-brothers-detail-father-winn-browns-extremely-abusive-behavior.html/

Kody said his father decided to be a polygamist when he was in high. He does have daddy issues, he said he felt like he was never good enough for his father. He said he felt like he was a disappointment to him. There was a rumor going around in high school that he might be gay and he said his father was a tough, manly man and wouldn't tolerate any of his sons being feminine or soft.  He was a big bully to Kody and his siblings. 

[Celia Rubenstein]

5 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

Janelle has decided her earthly marriage is done.  She just can’t figure out whether she wants to( or can) break the eternal connection that she believes in.  Meri is struggling with that too.

I hope they remember the "fact" that (according to their belief system) maintaining that eternal connection is not up to them.  It is totally up to Kody whether or not he "calls them through the veil" and accepts them as eternal wives on his little planet.  He does not have to if he does not want to ... 

If I were Meri, I would be thinking a guy who has ignored/avoided me and treated me like crap for over a decade and made it CLEAR he doesn't want to be anywhere near me is not going to be summoning me to spend eternity with him.  "Just soak in that," Meri! 

Janelle is (at least at the time of taping) in a slightly better position because Kody is still halfway pretending he actually wants to be with her.  Or was that ten months ago and she hasn't seen him since, and she is basically getting the Meri treatment from Kody, too, now?  I can't keep it straight.  Either way, he's just not that into you, Janelle, and if you think he's gonna be holding the veil open for you one day, you might want to re-evaluate things and consider finding another route to the afterlife.

Edited November 13, 2023 by Celia Rubenstein

[RazzleberryPie]

Best part of this episode was all the side eyes.

Tony side eyeing Mykelti when she said she thought everybody could make up and get back together.

Brianna when Robot Aurora was going on about ROBYN being a cheerleader peacemaker.

Also Somebody please get Tony a razor, comb and some conditioner. He would be so much better looking without the fried Charles Manson do. He looks like he had curly hair prone to frizz prior to his weight loss, but now it just looks sickly and dirty. He’s giving Leon a run for their money with the unkempt ness. 
During that dinner convo, Tony could not sound more like a dishonest, opportunity grifter if he tried. 

Congrats to Kody for finally admitting he is choosing his favorite wife over his kids. 
Also as much as Meri aggravates me, I would love to hear a discussion about Janelle joining their family. So was Janelle still married to Meri’s brother when she met Kody (who was her sister in law’s boyfriend/fiancé? Did janelle leave Meri’s bro for Kody? Meri is insufferable but I would have an absolute fit if my husband and my SIL started dating and then he expected us to live under the same roof, and then I also had to watch her have kid after kid. Keep in mind that normal LDS or AUB, they both believe marriages are sealed for eternity. I kinda give Meri a pass for hating Janelle. Not enough to not divide budgets equally amongst children, but dang.

[ladyscorpio]

5 minutes ago, RazzleberryPie said:

Best part of this episode was all the side eyes.

Tony side eyeing Mykelti when she said she thought everybody could make up and get back together.

Brianna when Robot Aurora was going on about ROBYN being a cheerleader peacemaker.

Also Somebody please get Tony a razor, comb and some conditioner. He would be so much better looking without the fried Charles Manson do. He looks like he had curly hair prone to frizz prior to his weight loss, but now it just looks sickly and dirty. He’s giving Leon a run for their money with the unkempt ness. 
During that dinner convo, Tony could not sound more like a dishonest, opportunity grifter if he tried. 

Congrats to Kody for finally admitting he is choosing his favorite wife over his kids. 
Also as much as Meri aggravates me, I would love to hear a discussion about Janelle joining their family. So was Janelle still married to Meri’s brother when she met Kody (who was her sister in law’s boyfriend/fiancé? Did janelle leave Meri’s bro for Kody? Meri is insufferable but I would have an absolute fit if my husband and my SIL started dating and then he expected us to live under the same roof, and then I also had to watch her have kid after kid. Keep in mind that normal LDS or AUB, they both believe marriages are sealed for eternity. I kinda give Meri a pass for hating Janelle. Not enough to not divide budgets equally amongst children, but dang.

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/sister-wives-star-janelle-brown-173224500.html

This explains a little more about Janelle being married to Meri's brother and meeting Kody. Janelle's mom met Kody's dad and married him as his second wife, so not only was she Meri's sister-in- law but she was also Kody's stepsister.  

[Adeejay]

Mykelti has a habit of putting Christine in some awkward and uncomfortable situations with Robyn and Kody.  All in the name of wanting to be the bridge and bringing the family unit back to how it was.  Which, if she is being honest with herself, was awful.  However, she doesn’t want Meri in her life and that is non-negotiable.  Seems hypocritical to me.  There is a saying, “Physician heal thyself first, before thou attempt to heal others.”

[Celia Rubenstein]

I was half laughing and half pissed listening to Janelle talk about how *if only* sister wives could all have legal marriages with one man, it would solve all the problems they face.  I can't believe how dumb she is after everything she's been through.  She is in her 50's, for crying out loud.  But she has no understanding of the law.  What is more shocking is she seems to still have no understanding of the psychology of plural marriage.

She thinks it is possible to have a guy married to more than one woman, and the women would each be entitled to 50% of their husbands estate.  How exactly would that math work when there are five wives?  Would their percentage of his estate be apportioned depending upon how many wives he has?  That would mean everytime the guy takes a wife, your interest in his estate would shrink.  It would be an incentive for a man to take wife after wife, and for wives to be the first to divorce.  That is arguable going to be more destuctive to the families involved than the way it works now, not to mention creating a total nightmare for the court system.

And FYI, there is already something called child support, Janelle.  You just have to have the guts to go after it (I wonder if Kody has provided any financial support for Savanah in the last few years).  And if she thinks that having a legal marriage means a woman can't be taken advantage of by her husband during a divorce, she is sadly mistaken.   Women (and men) with legal marriages get screwed in divorce settlements all the time.  That piece of paper is no guarantee of fairness.  I think the real solution to that issue is to not be a complete fool the way Janelle was and pour things like your salary, inheritance, and retirement into a bank account you have no control over.

What is even more dumber-er is that Janelle thinks the threat of a wife leaving and cleaning him out would make a husband toe the line.  No, what it would do is end plural marriage because men would never sign up if those were the terms.  Which would not be a bad thing, actually!

[xwordfanatik]

Mykelti, stop trying to make "family unity" happen!  It's not going to happen, and you want nothing to do with Meri, anyway.  You want to pick and choose who to be chummy with, so just accept that every other member of this messed-up family is going to do the same.

Tony, quit making stupid remarks and just put a cork in it.  

In fact, TLC should pull the plug on this show.  Kootie hasn't been interested in the OG 3 wives or most of the OG 13 kids, and has chosen monogamy, so the entire premise of polygamy is out the window, anyway.  

[Granny58]

1 hour ago, Celia Rubenstein said:

I hope they remember the "fact" that (according to their belief system) maintaining that eternal connection is not up to them.  It is totally up to Kody whether or not he "calls them through the veil" and accepts them as eternal wives on his little planet.  He does not have to if he does not want to ... 

I'm not sure of my facts either, but I think he needs 3 wives in order to be at the highest celestial level.  Anybody know for sure?

[Celia Rubenstein]

Yeah, he needs 3 wives ... sometimes I think that is the only reason they care about the other wives actually divorcing him.  It messes up their planet, lol

They couldn't care less about the actual people involved or their happiness or quality of life (or afterlife!).  They just have a quota to fill. 

[EarlGreyTea]

54 minutes ago, ladyscorpio said:

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/sister-wives-star-janelle-brown-173224500.html

This explains a little more about Janelle being married to Meri's brother and meeting Kody. Janelle's mom met Kody's dad and married him as his second wife, so not only was she Meri's sister-in- law but she was also Kody's stepsister.  

Yeah, I’m  no fan of Meri, but I’d feel some type of way about my sister in law/husbands stepsister suddenly going after my husband. Especially because Janelle was such a pretty woman. I never see it mentioned much, but her wedding photo in that dark blue dress makes her by far the most beautiful Brown bride to me. 

[islandgal140]

Robyn  saying she heard G@d speak to her in that white sports car and how they fell in love in it - you just know she was servicing her best customer in that car. 

 

[applewood]

3 hours ago, islandgal140 said:

Tony sounds like meatwad from Aqua Teen Hunger. Why does he love to speak inappropriately in front of mixed company and Truly? 

 

 

I can't get past the hair and general lack of grooming with Tony. Bleh! Then he acts like he and Mykelti are soooo special because they are having twins and the doctor was asking if they used fertility drugs and he was like we just had sex! I get that twins are unusual (about 1 in 250 births) but it's not like  Mykelti was pregnant with sextuplets or something. I know plenty of people who had twins naturally.

[OldWiseOne]

5 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

I am not someone that thinks adult children get to dictate their parent’s partners,   but there are occasions where they know better than their parents. Kody’s OG children are correct about Robyn, and correct about Kody.   He has abandoned them, treats them with contempt( not the other way around).  He doesn’t deserve relationships with them. 

3 hours ago, Emmeline said:

Kody thinks the kids want to be in contact with him but not Robyn.  I think he’s got that wrong.  Many don’t like Robyn but it boils down to Kody.  No one is trying to break Kody and Robyn up, the damage is done.

This week's new talking point / false claim / justification for douchebaggery - that the kids are trying to force Kody to give up his relationship with Robyn if he wants a relationship with them. What a load of BS!  

1 hour ago, Adeejay said:

Mykelti has a habit of putting Christine in some awkward and uncomfortable situations with Robyn and Kody.  All in the name of wanting to be the bridge and bringing the family unit back to how it was.  Which, if she is being honest with herself, was awful.  However, she doesn’t want Meri in her life and that is non-negotiable.  Seems hypocritical to me.  There is a saying, “Physician heal thyself first, before thou attempt to heal others.”

I had the exact same thought. Everyone else should forgive and forget so the fambly can get back together, but Mykelti doesn't want to lead by example and invite Meri on the zoom call for the gender reveal.

[Canadian Girl]

4 hours ago, Granny58 said:

I was watching K last night and I had the thought that he accepted polygamy because his dad did and he never felt good enough for his dad and so wanted to do this thing to gain praise.  Kody always needs praise, even from his kids he needs adoration and LOYALTY.  It makes me wonder if his issues are rooted in problems with his dad.  Plus, the way he is positively giddy around male friends reinforced this idea for me because it is male approval (not sexual).  

I always thought this - this entire family and all its issues exist because Kody wanted his dad and the cool guys at school/church to think he was cool. 

[General Days]

6 hours ago, mythoughtis said:

Wait … the season finale is next week?   But, they just now got to the end of summer 2022.  They didn’t even cover a full year.  They are still over a year behind.  Janelle mentioned Savannah had just started back to school. 

 

 

Where did you hear the finale is next week? I don't think so, or that is, TLC hasn't announced a number that I can find. Did they tease next week as if it were the season finale, and I just missed it?

 

4 hours ago, Granny58 said:

when did Kody's father embrace polygamy?  Before or after Kody did?

 

2 hours ago, ladyscorpio said:

https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/sister-wives-insides-kody-browns-daddy-issues-kodys-brothers-detail-father-winn-browns-extremely-abusive-behavior.html/

Kody said his father decided to be a polygamist when he was in high. He does have daddy issues, he said he felt like he was never good enough for his father. He said he felt like he was a disappointment to him. There was a rumor going around in high school that he might be gay and he said his father was a tough, manly man and wouldn't tolerate any of his sons being feminine or soft.  He was a big bully to Kody and his siblings. 

 

Winn and Genielle converted before Kody did, @Granny58. From what I recall, the chronology of conversions from LDS to AUB goes something like this.

When Kody was 14 years old, and were all still in the mainstream LDS church, Genielle explained the Doctrine of Celestial Plural Marriage (i.e. "the principle") to Kody and convinced him that it was true (i.e. the correct form of following the teachings of Joseph Smith and Brigham Young).

They were all still supposedly LDS when Kody went off to do his mission for the LDS church. In their book, Kody says he went off to south Texas to do his mission at age 19, and was there for two years.

While Kody was on his mission, Winn and Genielle were excommunicated from the LDS church and joined the AUB.

By the time Kody returned from his mission, his father had married his second wife, Bobbie. (Janelle's mother, Sheryl, was Winn's third wife.)

Kody was interested in the faith, and started hanging around with plygs, and then he met Meri. He asked for her father's permission to get to know her better, and received it, but hadn't yet converted. I don't think they consider this their courtship. If I recall correctly, they referred to this in their book as "hanging around."

Kody eventually decided to convert, was baptized into the AUB, then started courting Meri, and they got engaged a few weeks after (this all happened between Thanksgiving weekend and Christmas 1989). They had their first kiss on New Year's Eve, and got married in April of 1990. Meri was 19. Kody was 21.

@ladyscorpio, I agree. Kody in absolutely laden with daddy issues, even now, ten years after Winn's death.

 

2 hours ago, RazzleberryPie said:

Also as much as Meri aggravates me, I would love to hear a discussion about Janelle joining their family. So was Janelle still married to Meri’s brother when she met Kody (who was her sister in law’s boyfriend/fiancé? Did janelle leave Meri’s bro for Kody? Meri is insufferable but I would have an absolute fit if my husband and my SIL started dating and then he expected us to live under the same roof, and then I also had to watch her have kid after kid. Keep in mind that normal LDS or AUB, they both believe marriages are sealed for eternity. I kinda give Meri a pass for hating Janelle. Not enough to not divide budgets equally amongst children, but dang.

 

Instead of all the shed remodelling bullshit, and umpteen retellings of Meri & Kody's marriage and their anniversary conversation where he told her they were completely over, this is what the show should be concentrating on.

They should ask her stuff like:

1. Meri, have you heard from Christine or Janelle? Well, have you reached out to them? Let's do segments where you call them or meet with Janelle for coffee.
2. Do you ever see any of Christine and Janelle's kids in Flagstaff? Why not? Why don't you invite Gwendlyn to lunch and we'll film that?
3. How did you feel when Kody started courting your ex-sister-in-law/landlady Janelle? Did you know about their courtship at first, or did you only find out after the fact? What was your reaction when they wanted to get married on your birthday?
4. There's been lots of talk over the years about how wives sharing kitchens is abusive, and the implication is that you were the abuser -- however, in the Sister Wives book, Christine also complains about how Janelle wouldn't clean up after supper and would let the dirty dishes pile up until morning. Were there situations in which you felt abused?

 

1 hour ago, Celia Rubenstein said:

Yeah, he needs 3 wives ... sometimes I think that is the only reason they care about the other wives actually divorcing him.  It messes up their planet, lol

They couldn't care less about the actual people involved or their happiness or quality of life (or afterlife!).  They just have a quota to fill. 

I think Kody married Janelle to teach Meri a lesson (and that's why they originally planned the wedding for Meri's birthday, until Genielle talked them down).

I think Kody married Christine for clout in the AUB, as he admits, and maybe he did think adding a third wife would change the dynamic between Meri and Janelle, but I also think it is true that he never did love Christine.

I think Kody married Christine so he could achieve that third wife he needed for super special heaven access. She was a box to check off. That was it. And then she gave him five daughters, and only one son, who was nowhere as cool to him as Janelle's four sons were.

Robyn was the insurance policy, in case Kody wanted to dump Meri or Christine. He just happened to have the hots for Robyn and did fall in love with her to the extent that he is capable of loving anyone other than himself.

Edited November 13, 2023 by General Days
typo

[Teafortwo]

6 hours ago, Orcinus orca said:

This turkey is done, time to call it quits.

Methinks TLC may be fixin' to carve it up and serve as "The Janelle and Christine Family: Sister Wives for Life" with a side of Meri. Or some other sort of variation on the current theme.

[General Days]

2 minutes ago, Teafortwo said:

Methinks TLC may be fixin' to carve it up and serve as "The Janelle and Christine Family: Sister Wives for Life" with a side of Meri. Or some other sort of variation on the current theme.

I think that's why we're getting all the contrived events with Christine's crew. I think it's Christine and Janelle's backdoor pitch for a spinoff. Witness:

Oh look, the whole family teaches Truely to ride a bike.

Christine hosts Valentine's Day decoration craft night with her daughters and their husbands.

Christine has a 1970s themed 50th birthday party (NOTE: Christine also had a 1920s themed 50th birthday party that did not get filmed, but some people have put out pictures of it).

Christine and Paedon make mock tapioca pudding.

Christine and Janelle do lunch with Christine's Flagstaff friends. 

Christine, Gwendlyn, Janelle, Gabe, Garrison, and Savanah do supper, so they can talk about the Christmas Gift Exchange Group Chat from Hell that we've already talked about in two other episodes. 

Christine and Janelle travel to Backwater, Wherever, so Janelle can learn to ride an ATV and talk to people who left the AUB.

Christine and Janelle have lunch, even though Janelle has always said she doesn't really get in to doing sister wives lunch.

[Art Of Noiz]

5 hours ago, Granny58 said:

I don't understand this "I saw him and I knew in my heart that we should be together" even though already married.  Ugh, that's NOT how it works.  There are rules in place so the world isn't a shit show.  If this is how it works then I would have been married to Bobby Sherman!   

🤣

Omgosh!! Here come the brides!

[zamp33]

Quote

Robyn’s girls look miserable.  If they are hurting so bad and miss their siblings, why weren’t they on the zoom call? 

I was wondering the same thing- none of Robyn's children were on that call - not even Ari or Sol. If Mykelti has this amazing relationship with Robyn and Kody she keeps going on and on about, I would assume Mykelti would also have some kind of connection with the children. Also with the names on the zoom call, Ari could learn the names of her siblings. 

They can claim that Robyn is a cheerleader all they want but it was Robyn who said that inviting Janelle's kids for Christmas would be "scary"- that does not sound like a cheerleader to me. 

[mythoughtis]

39 minutes ago, General Days said:

Where did you hear the finale is next week? I don't think so, or that is, TLC hasn't announced a number that I can find. Did they tease next week as if it were the season finale, and I just missed it?

If so I missed it too.  A comment prior to mine said the finale was next week.  So I was asking.  I have no knowledge of it being next week.  Seems early to me. 

[RazzleberryPie]

2 hours ago, ladyscorpio said:

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/sister-wives-star-janelle-brown-173224500.html

This explains a little more about Janelle being married to Meri's brother and meeting Kody. Janelle's mom met Kody's dad and married him as his second wife, so not only was she Meri's sister-in- law but she was also Kody's stepsister.  

So who met whom first and what’s the timeline on these marriages?