S10.E01: Meri, On Her Own...

[Kohola3]

1 hour ago, LilWharveyGal said:

The Sisterhood of the Lonely Pants.

I wish I could like this 1000 times.

[LilWharveyGal]

15 minutes ago, laurakaye said:

Helpful hint: do NOT attempt to drink any beverages, nor nibble any snacks, whilst reading @LilWharveyGal's recap unless you enjoy choking on Cheez-Its and pretending to cough to mask laughter until your co-workers ask if you're okay.  Don't ask me how I know.  You're welcome!

Mea culpa, @laurakaye!

[Sasha888]

2 hours ago, LilWharveyGal said:

They wrap up dinner and Kody proclaims that Kristie is "vetted."

Yep, I found that very interesting. Janelle is concerned about letting a stranger into their midst...but after one short dinner, she's declared "safe". Kody asks everyone, in front of Kristie, if she's trustworthy enough now. Who the hell is going to say, in front of her, "ummmm....no, I need a little more time before I'll feel sure we can trust her"? Idiot.

I suppose it was needed for the show, this farce of having all the wives have dinner with Kristie, but none of them gave a shit. Janelle flat out said it in her TH, and Robyn certainly showed it by her actions - "look at this fascinating bread on my plate!" gobble gobble gobble! 🤣🤣🤣

I'm sorry for Kristie's bad experience and all, but the poor woman is being used AGAIN, this time by Meri, in Meri's attempt to justify her "it was just a friendship" bullshit. Which backfired mightily. 

I think Christine's repeating "Kristie was lonely and vulnerable and fell in love" was deliberate. While trying to sound sympathetic, she's actually reminding Kody that Meri was in love with Samuel Bananapants.

[xwordfanatik]

@LilWharveyGal, a wonderful recap!  Thank you :)

I thought of a couple more "gems" from this episode.  Kody saying something like, "oh, I can't have some of my kids having new shoes and others having holes in them."  I thought that was rich, coming from that jerk-off, when Snowflake aka Pudge got $$$ to go to her snooty-ass PRIVATE college, and Ysabel having to make do with some kind of quackery, IMO, to fix her scoliosis.  So, no to surgery that could affect Y's life, but OH YES when Meri insisted that Pudge go to an out-of-state snooty school!

Meri is more infuriating every season.  Balls to her fucking walls.  And yes, what's with Janelle siding with her, anyway?  Very strange, indeed.

[Kohola3]

1 minute ago, Sasha888 said:

I'm sorry for Kristie's bad experience and all, but the poor woman is being used AGAIN, this time by Meri, in Meri's attempt to justify her "it was just a friendship" bullshit. 

Kristie needs to run far and fast. And get some counseling - she's right back in the same place, just without the ketchup.  If she's not careful she'll be hosting Meri on her couch.

[Gothish520]

42 minutes ago, laurakaye said:

Helpful hint: do NOT attempt to drink any beverages, nor nibble any snacks, whilst reading @LilWharveyGal's recap unless you enjoy choking on Cheez-Its and pretending to cough to mask laughter until your co-workers ask if you're okay.  Don't ask me how I know.  You're welcome!

LOL! It's true, and I would actually recommend being judicious in your consumption when reading this entire forum, because there have been great zingers flying left and right here! 

[Gothish520]

3 minutes ago, xwordfanatik said:

@LilWharveyGal, a wonderful recap!  Thank you :)

I thought of a couple more "gems" from this episode.  Kody saying something like, "oh, I can't have some of my kids having new shoes and others having holes in them."  I thought that was rich, coming from that jerk-off, when Snowflake aka Pudge got $$$ to go to her snooty-ass PRIVATE college, and Ysabel having to make do with some kind of quackery, IMO, to fix her scoliosis.  So, no to surgery that could affect Y's life, but OH YES when Meri insisted that Pudge go to an out-of-state snooty school!

Meri is more infuriating every season.  Balls to her fucking walls.  And yes, what's with Janelle siding with her, anyway?  Very strange, indeed.

I will defend Kody here and say that I believe he did give a lot of pushback when they first discussed sending Mariah to Westminster. 

As for Ysabel, I get what they were trying to do, and I think that they all realize Ysabel will need surgery eventually. Also, I'm guessing that the ScoliSmart place was not cheap, so I doubt it's a case of not wanting to give Ysabel good care.

[NotinKansasanymore]

On 1/24/2019 at 2:01 AM, Sasha888 said:

to get her precious Mormon Tara.

OMG! That is the funniest thing I have seen. Can we please all refer to that bnb as Mormon Tara? 

[xwordfanatik]

37 minutes ago, Gothish520 said:

I will defend Kody here and say that I believe he did give a lot of pushback when they first discussed sending Mariah to Westminster. 

As for Ysabel, I get what they were trying to do, and I think that they all realize Ysabel will need surgery eventually. Also, I'm guessing that the ScoliSmart place was not cheap, so I doubt it's a case of not wanting to give Ysabel good care.

But Meri and Pudge did prevail.  So his protests apparently fell on deaf ears, so to speak.

[Mahamid Frauded Me]

8 minutes ago, xwordfanatik said:

But Meri and Pudge did prevail.  So his protests apparently fell on deaf ears, so to speak.

Only because Meri wept that she was barren that he gave in...now her excuse is I was catfished, next it will be I can't believe Luluroe went bankrupt and left me with all these fucking ugly leggings, so now I need 10K to start my new business of essential oils that repel elk on my property or some shit like that.

[Sasha888]

1 minute ago, Mahamid Frauded Me said:

essential oils that repel elk

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 That is just freaking awesome!

[xwordfanatik]

26 minutes ago, Mahamid Frauded Me said:

Only because Meri wept that she was barren that he gave in...now her excuse is I was catfished, next it will be I can't believe Luluroe went bankrupt and left me with all these fucking ugly leggings, so now I need 10K to start my new business of essential oils that repel elk on my property or some shit like that.

I love your humor, MFM!  

Yes, Meri the Miserable has that instinct that tells her who shall be browbeaten into what SHE wants!  She is Meri the Manipulator.  "See, see, everyone hates me," poor pitiable thing.  "If I would have had my way, I would have had eight kids."  Uh-huh.

[Natalie68]

4 hours ago, Gothish520 said:

Haha, very good!

Lying liars lie indeed. And Kody apologizing for being the asshole he's always been was great. Nice bit of self-awareness there. But I would definitely have felt outnumbered in that room if I were him.

I still can't believe that Meri yelled "In my HEAD I did!" when confronted about how she never said Bonnie would live in the caretaker's quarters. 

I'm going to admit that when Meri broke down and cried "I don't know what I'm doing!" I did feel bad for her. It was probably the most honest thing she said all episode, aside from the bits about how the family ain't getting squat from the BnB business.

I didn't.  This was her clearly trying to manipulate the others with her emotions.  She is a master at this.  Sadly the others still sorta fall for it.

[Sasha888]

38 minutes ago, Natalie68 said:

I didn't.  This was her clearly trying to manipulate the others with her emotions.  She is a master at this.  Sadly the others still sorta fall for it.

Me either. Early on, first year or so, I felt some sympathy for Meri, but that's long gone now. Now I just feel like "oh, here we go...Meri's not getting her way, so here come the waterworks."

She went from "Sure I have a business plan!" to "I don't know what I'm doooooooing!" WAY too fast. 

It wasn't even that long of a scene, but Meri went from hopeful/confident, to pissed as hell, to "I'll make a last ditch effort by crying", back to pissed as hell.

You can probably throw "fake confused" in there somewhere, too. "I don't understand why they are obsessed with this equity partner thing! I don't know what they want!" YES YOU DO. She knows damn well what they want, and apparently they've set up all other family businesses this way. She's fine with getting a piece of someone else's business. But when they'd like some profit if they come up with down payment money for hers, she suddenly doesn't even understand the words. 

It was very reminiscent of when they built the Vegas houses...most people would be thrilled to be choosing options for a big, brand new, half million dollar home. Meri spent most of the time bawling. Not getting your way? CRY.

Very little of the bawling she's done on camera is for sentimental reasons...the majority of it is bratty, I'm not getting what I want crying.

[LuvMyShows]

On 1/21/2019 at 6:12 PM, VedaPierce said:

meri has a lot going on in her mind that she uses to justify her outlandish demands. I guess "in my mind" is the same location for her all her spirit babies, the ones that she felt justified her needing a giant house. Wow. She's a real wacko...

I didn't watch the show regularly when they were getting the houses.  Was "spirit babies" a real thing that she mentioned when arguing for a larger house, and what the heck are they?

On 1/22/2019 at 9:18 AM, Kyanight said:

I agree with the person who said that the threat Jackie held over Meri was to go public with the photos she sent.  And probably the phone messages, as well.

Previously Meri has justified the photos and messages as saying that she was forced to do that because Jackie/Sam was threatening her family.

[Kyanight]

Just now, LuvMyShows said:

I didn't watch the show regularly when they were getting the houses.  Was "spirit babies" a real thing that she mentioned when arguing for a larger house, and what the heck are they?

Previously Meri has justified the photos and messages as saying that she was forced to do that because Jackie/Sam was threatening her family.

uh huh.  ::::picks nose::::

[Sasha888]

7 minutes ago, Kyanight said:

uh huh.  ::::picks nose::::

"picks nose" is just SLAYING me right now! 🤣 Everybody has just been hilarious on here today!

BTW if someone told me "I'm going to hurt your family unless you send me a picture of you blowing a banana", I'd CALL THE COPS, not head for the nearest produce section.

[Kyanight]

3 minutes ago, Sasha888 said:

"picks nose" is just SLAYING me right now! 🤣 Everybody has just been hilarious on here today!

BTW if someone told me "I'm going to hurt your family unless you send me a picture of you blowing a banana", I'd CALL THE COPS, not head for the nearest produce section.

It's so nice to be understood!   lol         And IF "Sam" had threatened her family, wouldn't she have those messages as proof, to show the cops?  To show Kody?  Her sister wives?  Because wouldn't that validate that she was telling the truth to her family? That there WERE threats?  (Yet Kody is in the dark over WHAT threats were made!)   And what constitutes a threat?  "You blow that banana and talk about the size of my cock or I will put pop rocks in your toilet!"   I don't believe for a second threats were made towards the FAMILY - I believe that when Meri suddenly realized that Lindsey and Sam were one and the same person as they were driving on that L O N G trip together in the car, when Meri got angry J.O. THEN threatened to go to Kody/Sister Wives and show them the banana pics, carved up thigh pics, have them listen to voice messages - etc.   No threats to anyone's well-being except MERI'S own peace of mind were ever made.   She didn't want her family to know the extent of her online "affair".   And knowing Meri she got heated and angry, J.O. posted anything and everything online and the rest is history.

Edited January 25, 2019 by Kyanight

[Sasha888]

28 minutes ago, Kyanight said:

I will put pop rocks in your toilet!

STOP, my sides hurt! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

Seriously though, you are absolutely right. She had to side-step Kody's question about "what kind of threats were made" because they ONLY threat was "I'll show the pictures and play the voice mails"....to your family, sell 'em to the tabloids, whatever.

If J.O. had nothing incriminating on Meri, why wouldn't Meri have just said "I never did anything inappropriate. Go fly a kite, you whack job."

Meri likes to use the word "threat" because it doesn't implicate HER at all, only the catfisher. The term Meri SHOULD be using is "blackmail". She didn't threaten you, she blackmailed you.

And you can't blackmail somebody unless you have something on 'em!

How Meri's fugly leggings don't burst into flames when she talks about this subject, I'll never know.

Edited January 25, 2019 by Sasha888
It's kite, not kit. Nobody flies a kit.

[deirdra]

3 hours ago, Mahamid Frauded Me said:

Only because Meri wept that she was barren that he gave in...now her excuse is I was catfished, next it will be I can't believe Luluroe went bankrupt and left me with all these fucking ugly leggings, so now I need 10K to start my new business of essential oils that repel elk on my property or some shit like that.

Knowing Meri, she'd probably be selling essential oils that attract elk to properties.  At least she realizes that "I don't know what I'm doing".

Edited January 25, 2019 by deirdra

[Sandy W]

When Meri was floundering her way through attempts to explain the "threats", she said that when JO/Lindsay visited her home for the LIV water meeting, Lindsay placed her phone on top of Meri's, making Meri believe that she had somehow extracted all the family personal data by doing this.  This is how Meri justified "protecting the family".

If JO has the ability to perform these feats, she should be working for the CIA instead of hanging out in her mother's basement.

[LuvMyShows]

18 minutes ago, Sasha888 said:

And you can't blackmail somebody unless you have something on 'em!

But that's why I mentioned that "Previously Meri has justified the photos and messages as saying that she was forced to do that because Jackie/Sam was threatening her family." I don't think JO is blackmailing her, because regardless of what pics, or emails, or voice messages JO has, Meri has already acknowledged having done those things, but excused it away by saying that JO was threatening the family and so that's why she wrote/said/did whatever JO has evidence of.  It doesn't matter if her BS is true or not...by explaining away whatever bad stuff JO has proof of, whether we or the family buys her explanation or not (and I don't, not for even a fraction of a second), there is now nothing to blackmail with. 

[Julyolo]

5 hours ago, Kohola3 said:

Kristie needs to run far and fast. And get some counseling - she's right back in the same place, just without the ketchup.  If she's not careful she'll be hosting Meri on her couch.

And didn't Meri meet Kristie on the internet too? I would love for someone to go toe to toe with her and say "You can deceive yourself as much as you like Meri, but you are NOT deceiving us anymore!"

[Sasha888]

1 hour ago, LuvMyShows said:

But that's why I mentioned that "Previously Meri has justified the photos and messages as saying that she was forced to do that because Jackie/Sam was threatening her family." I don't think JO is blackmailing her, because regardless of what pics, or emails, or voice messages JO has, Meri has already acknowledged having done those things, but excused it away by saying that JO was threatening the family and so that's why she wrote/said/did whatever JO has evidence of.  It doesn't matter if her BS is true or not...by explaining away whatever bad stuff JO has proof of, whether we or the family buys her explanation or not (and I don't, not for even a fraction of a second), there is now nothing to blackmail with. 

I wasn't saying JO is blackmailing her now. I was saying JO was telling her, back then, "I'll show this to your family and the whole world", and that's just what she did. I don't mean that she still has anything on Meri now.

If she did, she'd have sold it to the highest bidder a long time ago.

[Pickleinthemiddle]

7 hours ago, NotinKansasanymore said:

OMG! That is the funniest thing I have seen. Can we please all refer to that bnb as Mormon Tara? 

( In my fake southern accent ) After all " tomorrow is another wife's night".

[Spisee Hotsos]

8 hours ago, xwordfanatik said:

Meri is more infuriating every season.  Balls to her fucking walls.  And yes, what's with Janelle siding with her, anyway?  Very strange, indeed.

I wonder if it had anything to do with Christine and Robyn’s new “bestie” status? 

[Jeanne222]

Hasn't MAriah called Meri out as a liar?  I always thought that was their argument!  I'd love to know what Mariah knows!

[Pickleinthemiddle]

11 hours ago, Sasha888 said:

I'm a bit curious about Meri's childhood. Was she given whatever she wanted, and that's why she's like this? Or did she NEVER get what she wanted? Was she the golden child, or the forgotten child?

I have wondered the same thing.  My guess was that when Dad decided to take on more wives it threw her into a tail spin, because dad was no longer around all the time.

[TurtlePower]

7 hours ago, Jeanne222 said:

Hasn't MAriah called Meri out as a liar?  I always thought that was their argument!  I'd love to know what Mariah knows!

I know Mariah warned her mother early on in the "Sam" relationship that he wasn't who he said he was. She knew that much (as did other people who knew Meri was about to dive into it). So Meri playing full-on victim is full-on phony. 

[VedaPierce]

LOve this podcaster! She does a great recap snark on Sister Wives! This episode sister wives is the last half of podcast:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/realitv-recaps-love-after-lockup-sister-wives-seeking/id1279398284?mt=2&i=1000428355386

Edited January 25, 2019 by VedaPierce

[Kyanight]

3 minutes ago, TurtlePower said:

I know Mariah warned her mother early on in the "Sam" relationship that he wasn't who he said he was. She knew that much (as did other people who knew Meri was about to dive into it). So Meri playing full-on victim is full-on phony. 

I agree!   And I don't believe Meri can even rightfully claim to be a victim.  She might not have been the LEGAL wife, but she is living in a committed polygamist relationship and it's possible that at that point in time was being financially supported by that family?  (Not sure about THAT part, but it doesn't change my stance.)  If you choose to stray outside of your committed relationship, you reap what you sow.  Legally she could have started up any type of relationship she wanted - but she should have left the family first.   So in my opinion what difference does it make if her side piece was a woman instead of a man, was lying instead of being honest, was a jerk who made threats and then followed through with them?  MERI made her choices - NO ONE forced her into this relationship (however weird and online or not) with "Sam".  She is not a victim.

[suomi]

30 minutes ago, TurtlePower said:

I know Mariah warned her mother early on in the "Sam" relationship that he wasn't who he said he was. She knew that much (as did other people who knew Meri was about to dive into it). So Meri playing full-on victim is full-on phony. 

So. I've watched since season one but faded a little here and there and didn't watch that season, I only read about it and I don't remember that. I've been thinking she confessed to Mariah just before she confessed to the others and that's when they got into it. I didn't realize that Mariah knew while it was ongoing. I'm going to find out which season that was and binge it. I'm glad you worded your post the way you did, thank you! 

[VedaPierce]

17 hours ago, Sasha888 said:

 

I think Christine's repeating "Kristie was lonely and vulnerable and fell in love" was deliberate. While trying to sound sympathetic, she's actually reminding Kody that Meri was in love with Samuel Bananapants.

100%!!!! These people are PROS when it comes to this passive aggressive stuff. They’ve lived their entire lives jockeying for position in their own families...it’s in their blood. 

If any of them would get their asses in gear and go out into the real world and get real jobs....they would be sharks. 

[laurakaye]

17 hours ago, Sasha888 said:

Yep, I found that very interesting. Janelle is concerned about letting a stranger into their midst...but after one short dinner, she's declared "safe". Kody asks everyone, in front of Kristie, if she's trustworthy enough now. Who the hell is going to say, in front of her, "ummmm....no, I need a little more time before I'll feel sure we can trust her"? Idiot.

And didn't Meri smirk something like "so she's good to meet the kids now" or something like that?  I remember thinking, "Huh?!"  Why would Meri want to introduce her fellow catfish "victim" to the kids?  Like, what was Meri planning - rolling up to Christine's house with Christie in tow and telling Truely, "this is the lady that is going to help your daddy not hate me anymore?"  That made no freaking sense...unless Meri is aware that all of her bonus kids now also hate her so dragging Christie around like a show pony is going to somehow mend those fences...I just can't with this whole bringing in all the other JO victims from various parts of the country to meet the fambly.  

 

13 hours ago, Sandy W said:

When Meri was floundering her way through attempts to explain the "threats", she said that when JO/Lindsay visited her home for the LIV water meeting, Lindsay placed her phone on top of Meri's, making Meri believe that she had somehow extracted all the family personal data by doing this.  This is how Meri justified "protecting the family".

If JO has the ability to perform these feats, she should be working for the CIA instead of hanging out in her mother's basement.

Whoa, I totally missed that!  Did she really say that?  Out loud?  Did the other wives have any reactions to this?  How did they not all collectively roll their eyes right out of their heads??

[deirdra]

Mariah was supposedly coming over to meet Kristie the day after the adult dinner she couldn't make because she & Sludge were "working".  In addition to warning Meri early in the "relationship", Mariah has probably read every scrap of evidence posted by "Sam".  I hope she confronts Meri in front of Kody & the bonus moms, explicitly accusing her of cheating emotionally.  No cryptically evading the question in a gazebo like 2 years ago.

Edited January 25, 2019 by deirdra

[Gothish520]

4 hours ago, laurakaye said:

And didn't Meri smirk something like "so she's good to meet the kids now" or something like that?  I remember thinking, "Huh?!"  Why would Meri want to introduce her fellow catfish "victim" to the kids?  Like, what was Meri planning - rolling up to Christine's house with Christie in tow and telling Truely, "this is the lady that is going to help your daddy not hate me anymore?"  That made no freaking sense...unless Meri is aware that all of her bonus kids now also hate her so dragging Christie around like a show pony is going to somehow mend those fences...I just can't with this whole bringing in all the other JO victims from various parts of the country to meet the fambly.  

I see some small benefit in telling her story to the parents and maybe Mariah, but the rest of the family probably doesn't need or want to hear the gory details. Mariah can fill the older kids in if they are curious. It might help the parents to understand exactly how insidious this person was. Still does not change the fact that Meri went looking for love in all the wrong places.

[Mahamid Frauded Me]

It is clear that Meri wants validation that she was not in the wrong, poor Meri with the crappy leggings and fugly prints got in way over her head and flat out lied to the fambily about just how involved/love she was with Sam. Look how many others were scammed by JO she will cry, but the fact remains is that those other women were not in a relationship that we know of.  She probably is lying about the threats made to the family...JO was probably just going to expose her and she made it seem that she was in fear of all of them to take the heat off her. Meri is a liar, manipulator and a very bad dresser...

[xwordfanatik]

Meri is a liar, manipulator and a very bad dresser...

MFM, you just summed up Meri perfectly!  She's not responsible for anything stupid that she does, and refuses to own it.  The truth is not something she can dill with.

[Mothra]

On 1/23/2019 at 6:17 PM, Sasha888 said:

I think Kody has always allowed Meri to be totally selfish towards the family. What I don't get is why is he still allowing it?

I don't do social media, and I haven't read their book; what understanding I have of polygamous LSDers I gained from watching "Big Love," and there I learned that the position of "first wife" is paramount among the sister-wives, that First Wife generally gets to set the tone, gets first choice of everything.  Her opinions matter just a little bit less than the husband's and a great deal more than those of the later wives, with the newest wife--in this case Robyn--being at the bottom of the totem pole.  I think more surprising, again based solely on my Big Love Education (BLE) that Robyn seems to feel so important in this family.  I would expect Meri to pretty much get what she wants, despite her semi-barenness, but for Robyn to feel so entitled seems wrong to me.  Of course, she was the hottest until Christine got busy--but she is afflicted with that block-shaped head.  (I was going to suggest that she's a three-input woman, but delicacy forbids it).

[xwordfanatik]

1 minute ago, Mothra said:

I don't do social media, and I haven't read their book; what understanding I have of polygamous LSDers I gained from watching "Big Love," and there I learned that the position of "first wife" is paramount among the sister-wives, that First Wife generally gets to set the tone, gets first choice of everything.  Her opinions matter just a little bit less than the husband's and a great deal more than those of the later wives, with the newest wife--in this case Robyn--being at the bottom of the totem pole.  I think more surprising, again based solely on my Big Love Education (BLE) that Robyn seems to feel so important in this family.  I would expect Meri to pretty much get what she wants, despite her semi-barenness, but for Robyn to feel so entitled seems wrong to me.  Of course, she was the hottest until Christine got busy--but she is afflicted with that block-shaped head.  (I was going to suggest that she's a three-input woman, but delicacy forbids it).

What is a three-input woman?  

Snark Alert:  Robyn has been likened to Dudley Do-Right.  I do believe it was on this forum, but I could be wrong.

[Sasha888]

I don't know if comparing the Browns to other polygamist families is very useful...stereotypes are sometimes wrong. And even if 95% of 1st wives hold a certain "position" in the family, this particular family has had a shake-up on who is the legal wife.

So I just go by what I have seen, and this is what I've seen (as far a shifts in favoritism). 

Season 1, Kody takes Meri to a special, expensive restaurant for their anniversary, and takes her on a trip to Mexico. Kody takes Janelle camping for their anniversary. Robyn's around but isn't a wife yet (Kody's still a'courtin' her). Somewhere near the end of that season is Kody & Robyn's wedding and honeymoon. Robyn gets an 11 day honeymoon. No one else got that long and Janelle is fuming.

During the other earlier seasons, we see the fake "flee to Vegas" BS and Meri gets the most expensive rental house which really would have been good for Janelle as she has 6 kids to house. It appears to most people that Robyn is getting the lion's share of Kody's time. However, Meri gets a second trip to Mexico for her birthday.

Now we're going to build McMansions. Everyone chooses their own options for their homes. Meri is spending the most, and cries until she gets her stupid wet bar, prompting the PERFECTLY named Meri thread on this forum, "Meri Brown and her Wet Bar of Tears". I feel I need to mention Meri's tweets over last season and this season here....Meri wants to be seen as "logical" by her family and by the world, when discussing this B&B. I want to point out that Meri's "logic" in the house situation was "I deserve as many bedrooms as the other wives because I WOULD have had 8 kids, if I could have!" (how noble of you Meri, to be thinking about Logan, Aspyn, Dayton, Truely, Solomon, etc etc as you snatch a ton of empty bedrooms for yourself, and take family resources away from children that actually DO exist). Kody allows this. Sometime after they move into the houses, Kody allows Robyn to hire live-in childcare because she's "so busy" with her jewelry business. Everyone else has to take care of their own damn kids.

Fast forward...Meri loses the coveted legal marriage to Robyn. Kody and Robyn emphatically state that legal marriage means nothing to them, but then go to Hawaii on what they won't admit is a second honeymoon, and claim it is paid for by Robyn saving up grocery money. Somewhere around this time Christine wants some money to go visit her sick father and Kody tells her tough titty, save up for it yourself.

Meri now strays from the relationship and is catfished. She's clearly out of favor with Kody following this. SO out that they are barely speaking. Meri starts to hear the word "no" now, and she's clearly never heard it before. She wants to take Solomon to Utah to smooth things over with Mariah. Kody and Robyn say "no" and Meri stomps off, slamming the door. (Meri took her own child on a trip to Disneyland to meet "Sam", but when she got there all she got was "Lindsay", so I don't blame them. I wouldn't let Meri take one of my houseplants away for the weekend.)

And now, we are treated to episodes featuring Meri's obsession with getting this house in Parowan, and episodes of Meri trying to explain that she was a blameless victim of a catfisher. I'm not buying it and it seems Kody isn't either. Finally, in this episode, Meri wants 40 grand and is told "no".

So, what I've seen over the years, is blatant favoritism towards Meri & Robyn (Christine & Janelle take a seat, you get nada), but then a shift after Meri strays - Meri no longer gets "everything" she wants but still seems to get "some" just to shut her up. Robyn's clearly in charge and getting whatever she wants, she's all alone at the top now. So "first wife" doesn't really hold true in this family...1st and 4th were often given what they wanted, 2nd and 3rd were told tough shit figure it out yourself. 1st wife loses the legal marriage to 4th wife, who really now holds ALL the cards, but even so Meri's going to TRY to get more than her share because legal or not, she still feels she was FIRST. She does not seem to realize that everything around her has changed...her relationship with Kody, her relationships with the other wives, all of it.

4th and legal wife now gets whatever she wants and feels secure in her position...2nd & 3rd are where they've always been, and Meri...well, Meri's getting less, but doesn't understand it. Kody still gives in some, just to shut her up, which I don't understand because he spends almost no time with her, so how much of it does he really have to listen to? Personally, I'd let her bitch and moan.

Being "first wife" has not given Meri the power it seems to hold in some other polygamous families. She was usurped by Robyn BEFORE she even strayed off with Sam. She's gotten a lot more, money-wise, and probably time-wise, than Christine & Janelle, but being First Wife didn't mean squat once Kody met Robyn. Being 4th did not make Robyn the least important or the least favorite.

And let's not forget Kody in all of this, because why let this douchebag off the hook...looking at everything that has happened over the years, Kody has favored certain wives over others. Not so much because of marriage order, but just because a certain wife was his favorite at the time or maybe because the squeaky wheel gets the grease. Then he has the unmitigated GALL, at the end of this episode, to say that he can't believe that Meri doesn't understand after all this time, that we have to think of the family as a whole and he thinks she's being a bit selfish.

She's being WAY selfish, Kody, but you taught her that was okay! You're a huge asshole! You've given Meri and Robyn more for years, and treated Janelle & Christine like garbage, and you're going to preach about fairness? It was your job, Mr. Leadership, to make sure things were evenly split between your wives and children. We can all see that you haven't done that, so STFU.

Edited January 26, 2019 by Sasha888

[Granny58]

On 1/23/2019 at 8:57 PM, Kohola3 said:

  Hide contents

 

I did a distance check and this is twice as far from Parawon than Vegas.  Doh@!

[Kohola3]

5 minutes ago, Sasha888 said:

It was your job, Mr. Leadership, to make sure things were evenly split between your wives and children.

Good job at summing up.  And it all falls squarely on Kootie, he was never interested in making it work;  he's too damned lazy.  He just expected the sheep wives to duke it out and leave him out of it.  And second, he was just in in for the opportunity to nail a different woman each night under the guise of religion.  He's as much of a Prophet as my dog. 

Actually, she's better because she can always prophesy when her dinner will be ready.

[Kyanight]

7 minutes ago, Sasha888 said:

Meri starts to hear the word "no" now, and she's clearly never heard it before. She wants to take Solomon to Utah to smooth things over with Mariah. Kody and Robyn say "no" and Meri stomps off, slamming the door. (Meri took her own child on a trip to Disneyland to meet "Sam", but when she got there all she got was "Lindsay", so I don't blame them. I wouldn't let Meri take one of my houseplants away for the weekend.)

Ditto!!  When my kids were little there was no way someone was taking them away for a trip without me, ESPECIALLY after that catfishing crap!

 

7 minutes ago, Sasha888 said:

Meri's going to TRY to get more than her share because legal or not, she still feels she was FIRST. 

A PERFECT example of this was on the episode last Sunday when Robyn said "That's just the way Kody is" (or something to that effect) and Meri got angry and said, "I KNOW!  I've known him for 27 years!"  It was said to remind everyone that SHE was the FIRST wife, and they'd better not forget it.  (So she deserves the 40 grand and they can all starve and wear holey shoes for all she cares!)

8 minutes ago, Sasha888 said:

She's being WAY selfish, Kody, but you taught her that was okay! You're a huge asshole! You've given Meri and Robyn more for years, and treated Janelle & Christine like garbage, and you're going to preach about fairness? It was your job, Mr. Leadership, to make sure things were evenly split between your wives and children. We can all see that you haven't done that, so STFU.

No comment, just wanted to bold the first part!   : )

[Sasha888]

1 minute ago, Kohola3 said:

He just expected the sheep wives to duke it out and leave him out of it.

VERY good point. He does just throw up his hands a lot of the time and act like "You guys work it out". Some leader.

Someone mentioned earlier than it was rich hearing Kody say he "couldn't have some of his kids going to school in new shoes and some with holes in their shoes"...and I totally agree. He must have learned this earth shattering thing JUST NOW because he's never been fair in his treatment before!

Any talk of fairness from Kody makes me want to kick him in the face. Meri clearly got more pre-Robyn, and as soon as he met Robyn...well, we all know who's getting more of everything now. Although I do think Christine is his favorite right now...but she's not getting extra money or anything....yet. 

Spoiler

Christine has managed to wrangle a house out of Kody in Flagstaff...her rental has been purchased, but at this point no other wife has anything but their empty lots. This might be Kody's idea of a "5th house for the kids and grandkids" though.

[UsernameFatigue]

5 hours ago, Mahamid Frauded Me said:

It is clear that Meri wants validation that she was not in the wrong, poor Meri with the crappy leggings and fugly prints got in way over her head and flat out lied to the fambily about just how involved/love she was with Sam. Look how many others were scammed by JO she will cry, but the fact remains is that those other women were not in a relationship that we know of.  She probably is lying about the threats made to the family...JO was probably just going to expose her and she made it seem that she was in fear of all of them to take the heat off her. Meri is a liar, manipulator and a very bad dresser...

Meri wasn't in a relationship, either. Certainly not with her ex husband Kody. The Kodster distanced himself as soon as shiny penny Robyn came along. How he managed to scam Meri into divorcing him so Robyn could hop scotch over the other wives to be wife number one is amazing to me. But Meri did just that, for the fambily. And as soon as Kody divorced Meri he made it clear he had no interest in any type of relationship with her, either emotional or physical. That was before the catfishing. 

Meri more than any other wife has shown what a sham this whole lifestyle is. Kody is free to dump Meri because he has three other wives to take care of his needs, including one that can still pump out mini Kody's. Meri has no one filling the husband role. Zilch. Zip. Nada. No wonder none of the kids appear to want to follow in their parents' footsteps. If for no other reason than that, I am glad Meri is on this show. 

BTW, I was never sure how much Meri might be exaggerating about the catfisher, but after hearing Kristie's stories I think this person really was/is one f**ked up human being. 

[Sasha888]

10 hours ago, laurakaye said:

And didn't Meri smirk something like "so she's good to meet the kids now" or something like that?  I remember thinking, "Huh?!"  Why would Meri want to introduce her fellow catfish "victim" to the kids?  Like, what was Meri planning - rolling up to Christine's house with Christie in tow and telling Truely, "this is the lady that is going to help your daddy not hate me anymore?"  That made no freaking sense...unless Meri is aware that all of her bonus kids now also hate her so dragging Christie around like a show pony is going to somehow mend those fences...I just can't with this whole bringing in all the other JO victims from various parts of the country to meet the fambly. 

Totally agree. Meri can trot out as many JO victims as she wants, it does not change the facts of what MERI did. Meri cannot get this through her thick skull. Taking responsibility is what might help her relationships with her family. Meri still refuses to take ANY responsibility. 

I think everyone on the face of the planet agrees that JO is the worst of the worst...every horrible adjective we can think of probably fits JO...psycho, liar, predator, sick, disgusting, etc. Meri does not NEED to prove how awful JO is. It's OBVIOUS how truly disturbed and horrific she is. But none of that changes what YOU did, Meri!!!!

This family believes that their spiritual marriages are JUST as important as any legal marriage. In their culture, Meri was not a free, single, divorced woman. She was not, in their eyes, or even in her OWN eyes, free to go off and pursue a relationship. Meri certainly doesn't consider herself to be "not married" to Kody now. I bet she'd have a shit fit if someone told her NOW "You're not one of the wives. You're not married to Kody." 

If Christine had been the one who got catfished...would Meri be saying "Oh well, it's okay that Christine did that, she was never really married to Kody anyway." I highly doubt it. I think she'd be the first one to point out that Christine had strayed outside of her marriage.

Meri wants her now-spiritual marriage to Kody recognized when it's convenient for her. But she'd like everyone to forget it when it comes to talk about the catfish. You can't have it both ways.

Edited January 26, 2019 by Sasha888

[neh]

Wow, wow, wow, wow! Meri is beyond awful! 

[TurtlePower]

2 hours ago, Sasha888 said:

Totally agree. Meri can trot out as many JO victims as she wants, it does not change the facts of what MERI did. Meri cannot get this through her thick skull. Taking responsibility is what might help her relationships with her family. Meri still refuses to take ANY responsibility. 

I think everyone on the face of the planet agrees that JO is the worst of the worst...every horrible adjective we can think of probably fits JO...psycho, liar, predator, sick, disgusting, etc. Meri does not NEED to prove how awful JO is. It's OBVIOUS how truly disturbed and horrific she is. But none of that changes what YOU did, Meri!!!!

This family believes that their spiritual marriages are JUST as important as any legal marriage. In their culture, Meri was not a free, single, divorced woman. She was not, in their eyes, or even in her OWN eyes, free to go off and pursue a relationship. Meri certainly doesn't consider herself to be "not married" to Kody now. I bet she'd have a shit fit if someone told her NOW "You're not one of the wives. You're not married to Kody." 

If Christine had been the one who got catfished...would Meri be saying "Oh well, it's okay that Christine did that, she was never really married to Kody anyway." I highly doubt it. I think she'd be the first one to point out that Christine had strayed outside of her marriage.

Meri wants her now-spiritual marriage to Kody recognized when it's convenient for her. But she'd like everyone to forget it when it comes to talk about the catfish. You can't have it both ways.

Everything you just said x1,000

[Jeanne222]

Mariah will not go to the mat with Meri!  She loves the money, dinners, drinks and checks too much to go against the role she has been given and is playing!