Can we make the anthropologists regulars on Sister Wives? Finally they are asking the questions I want answered…except for the big one–why does Kody Brown own so much denim?
Kody and Janelle are still trying to get to the bottom of the movie theater brawl between Garrison and Gabriel. Before punishing Garrison for smacking Gabriel by not allowing him to go on his ROTC trip to Hawaii, Kody calls in Paedon as a witness. Gabriel has been swearing up and down that he didn’t touch his brother, but Paedon confirms Garrison’s story. Yes, Garrison smacked Gabe, but only after Gabe slapped him. Knowing he’s been caught in a lie, Gabriel’s cheeks turn red and he’s on the verge of tears. Kody questions why he was so afraid to tell the truth…it’s not like he’s ever been spanked. I just wish this poor kid was being disciplined off camera. He is totally embarrassed. They take away a privilege, but Janelle knows the shame of being caught is the bigger punishment. Christine wonders if she can now trust Gabe, and Meri has decided that she and Kody are going to dress as the denim twins.
CLICK THE CONTINUE READING BUTTON FOR MORE!
The anthropologists are plotting their next move. Antoinette wants to get to the bottom of the wives’ sex lives, but she is concerned she won’t get much feedback from the wives. The following morning, Solomon is going in for dental surgery. Robyn is once again a ball of stress and worry. Antoinette and Richard are speaking with Christine and Annie. Annie admits that she had good husband, but she struggled with leaving the religion and her family. Antoinette feels honored that Annie feels comfortable enough to share her story.
Antoinette has been reading the Sister Wives first book, and she knows that things between Janelle and Meri have been very tense in the past. Richard and Antoinette are asking about their relationship, and Meri admits that she and Kody are working on their issues but she doesn’t think she’ll ever be close to Janelle. Meri seems very measured in her responses. She says that she wishes that she and Janelle had a more emotionally open relationship, but she knows that will never happen. She blames both her and Janelle’s less mature selves from back in the day. Meri quickly halts this line of questioning by announcing that Solomon is back from surgery.
Kody is planning a poker night, and Gabriel thinks he should be allowed to play. Not so fast, buddy. Gabriel is grounded from poker. As he storms off, Antoinette tells Robyn that she’s noticed Kody spends a lot of one-on-one time with Solomon compared to the other kids. Finally! Robyn tries to explain that Kody wants to have special time with each of his children, but he won’t force a relationship if his kids don’t want one. Robyn is not happy with this line of questioning. That night, the gang gathers around the table for some poker while Gabe sulks in his room. Kody frightens me with his high ponytail.
Mariah is back from her expensive college with the announcement that she now wants to be a physician’s assistant as opposed to a doctor because of the hours involved. Richard wonders if she’s concerned about hurting her future husband’s ego by potentially being the breadwinner. Mariah believes that if a man feels that way, he’s probably not the right husband for her. Kody wants her to wait to get married and have a long courtship so she knows her husband well. Meri wishes that her courtship had lasted longer and that she’d had a few years to be independent. Christine is very sensitive to this conversation because she views it as the family slamming how it came to be. She and Kody didn’t have any courtship, so she feels like talking about long courtships is a dis at her. Robyn interrupts to defend Kody, saying he is just talking about wanting his kids to make the best decisions about plural marriage.
The wives, the anthropologists, and Kody are heading to a coffee shop to have the conversations that Antoinette and Richard want to have without the children around. Antoinette cites Kody’s closer relationship with his sons than with his daughters. Richard thinks that Kody tries to connect with his girls by encouraging them to be independent. Robyn is all about jumping in to defend her husband. Antoinette wonders how Kody would interact with his sons if not through hyper-masculine physical activity. Kody is stumped. Richard follows up with how the family would react to a gay child. Robyn knows that with as many children as they have, there is a chance one child could be have same sex attraction. They would love their child and embrace that child’s partner regardless. Kody advocates for no sex before marriage no matter one’s sexual orientation. Richard doesn’t believe that it’s necessarily plausible for Kody to assume all of his children will remain chaste until marriage.
Robyn turns the questions towards the anthropologists and asks what they were most surprised to learn about the family. Antoinette was shocked to learn that Kody wasn’t a big jerk. She assumed that he would be controlling, but after they met he was very approachable. Kody then announces they all have places to be and thanks Antoinette and Richard from coming to study their family. Janelle then enlists them to come help her put up a for sale sign at a house she’s listing. She loves having her own job and her own paycheck. Antoinette asks Janelle her take on the situation with Meri. Janelle says she wants to go to counseling with Meri but is scared to approach Meri about it.
The Browns invite the anthropologists to one final dinner. Richard and Antoinette are appreciative of the family being so open during the experience. The pair is gifted with leftover beans and a necklace from My Sister Wives Closet. Meeting with their professor, Antoinette admits that she wasn’t able to pinpoint a favorite wife, as each plays a different role. Richard says he wouldn’t be able to handle the pressure of multiple wives. He had a hard time dating more than one woman casually. Antoinette admits that she would love being in a sister wives situation, but she wouldn’t want the patriarch. I feel like we are getting a sugar-coated view of their time with the Browns.
As the episode draws to a close, Meri shares she has an appointment with a lawyer. She doesn’t want to talk about it, but she’ll only say that it’s a very serious decision that will affect the family. It’s been floating around in her mind since Robyn joined the family. In her attorney’s office, she drops the bomb that she’d like to divorce Kody. Here we go, people!
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK OF LAST NIGHT’S EPISODE? WERE THE ANTHROPOLOGISTS TOO EASY ON THE BROWNS?
[Photo Credit: TLC]
