Last night, Tamron Hall tackled a two hour Sister Wives special. She’s a braver woman than I am! The Browns revisit the season, from Meri divorcing Kody so he can marry Robyn and adopt her children. Robyn and Kody share their opposing views about whether they should have celebrated their marriage license with more pomp and circumstance, and Tamron calls out Kody for caring about the family’s critics. Tamron asks if Kody legally marrying Robyn legitimizes her as more of a wife. Janelle argues that Meri was legitimized legally and defends Robyn against her detractors who think she’s put a diabolical plan into action. Robyn has a difficult time watching herself breakdown over whether her ex-husband would terminate his parental rights. Kody sheds tears of happiness watching the adoption footage, and Tamron questions if Meri felt detached throughout the adoption process. She admits that she was disengaged throughout filming, but her attitude had nothing to do with her family.
Robyn’s pregnancy announcement is highlighted, and she and Meri joke about their plan to have Meri relay the news. Janelle admits she was in shock…she expected Meri to say she wasn’t going back to school or had cancer. No middle ground for Janelle! Robyn beams about how exciting her pregnancy is through the eyes of the other children. Tamron opines that Kody is already stretched thin with so many kids, but Christine interjects, stating that when it comes to Kody’s time, it’s quality not quantity. Kody reminds Tamron he doesn’t golf, so he’s got plenty of time to spend with his brood. Sure. Christine’s meds are working overtime as she gushes about their couples retreat, complete with two counselors and “stupid rock building.” I love this Christine. She laughs throughout the footage, but I get the feeling she’s about to burst into tears.
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Christine reveals that all of her sister wives had her back over Kody’s atrocious behavior, and Kody surmises that maybe he railroaded Christine during the rock tower exercise. Kody recalls Christine’s jealousy, and she remembers how horribly she felt. She wanted to be part of a plural marriage, but she wasn’t expecting to have so much envy regarding her sister wives. Tamron wonders if the ladies can pinpoint a time that Christine was jealous, but Robyn asserts that her question goes against the girl code. Tamron reminds Robyn that this is a tell all, not the girl code. Christine talks about her lack of self-confidence and a dark time when she realized how flawed she was. Christine’s meds are on point as she waxes poetic about the harder times. Kody interrupts to say that he had a hand in causing her insecurity, and Meri poo poos Christine for being so hard on herself. Christine glows as she states that her relationship with Kody is now much stronger.
The older Brown children join Tamron, and all of Madison’s siblings are team-Caleb. She admits to fearing that she was too young to fall so hard, but she knows it’s right. Logan gives his stamp of approval. Maddie also expresses her disappointment in being turned away from the LDS church because of her parents’ decisions. All seven of the children say they will not be in a polygamist marriage…even Mariah, who once wanted sister wives of her own. Paedon can’t imagine ever being as powerful as his father, so he can’t see himself with more than one wife. That’s a very telling statement. Kody is then in the hot seat for his relationship with his daughters. Tamron gives Kody a hard time for relishing in the lack of jealousy that comes from spending time with his girls as opposed to his wives. Robyn complains that the mothers get the brunt of the children’s brooding behavior while Kody is poised to just be a fun dad.
The middle children take to the couches for some light-hearted banter ranging from Robyn’s kids being adopted by Kody to that crazy cardboard boat building competition. The mom trump card is played, and the kids talk over one another until Dayton reminds them to take turns. Gabe is crowned the mischievous one, and Savannah concludes that Solomon will be very jealous when he’s no longer the baby of the family. She can relate thanks to Truely.
The wives return to the sofas to discuss Janelle and Meri’s desire to have a stronger bond after years of passive aggression. Janelle shares how her relationship evolved over time, and Meri reveals that she isn’t expecting them to be best friends. However, she is open to working on their friendship. Tamron shifts gears to bring up Meri’s teary meltdown during the family’s Alaskan vacation that we all know is a byproduct of her catfishing situation. Meri sits stoically while the others ponder her distance from the group. My girl Tamron isn’t sugarcoating any questions, and Meri admits to being bombarded on social media by fans reaching out to cheer her on for divorcing Kody. Meri was flattered by the woman who pretended the man who catfished her because she was craving the affection and attention she wasn’t getting from Kody. She adds that the voicemails that the catfisher made public were specific messages that he had prompted her to leave him. Meri continues, saying that the online guy threatened her, saying his friend could hack into all of her social media. She claims she distanced herself from her family to protect them. Am I buying this? Is Kody buying this? I can’t tell. Kody believes that he made mistakes that left her in a lonely and vulnerable position. Tamron tries to pin down a response from Kody as to how he felt to discover his wife was engaging in this relationship. Of course, in true Kody fashion, he talks around her question.
Tamron inquires as to what Meri was missing in her real life that would cause her to look elsewhere. She admit that she just enjoyed laughing with this new person, and she assures Tamron that nothing physical ever transpired because she never met her catfisher in person. A tearful Meri shares that it was extremely difficult to reveal the news to Kody and her sister wives, and Robyn cries that she begged Meri to tell her what was wrong. Robyn was the first family member she was able to tell. Kody writes off Meri’s behavior as a harmless “flirt” because he doesn’t understand how someone can love someone they’ve never met. Janelle’s gut instinct was to protect Meri at all costs. Meri blames social media buzz for people assuming that she was leaving the family. She has told Kody and her sister wives (as well as the oldest children) the “whole story,” and Tamron presses her about her admissions that she was going to leave her family for her catfisher. Meri is adamant that she was only doing what she thought she needed to do to get out of the situation. Not shockingly, the Tell All end with Truely joining Christine on the sofa, and Kody touting Solomon.
TELL US – WHAT DID YOU THINK ABOUT THE TELL-ALL SPECIAL? DID MERI TELL THE WHOLE TRUTH ABOUT HER CATFISH?
[Photo Credit: TLC]
