Nuanced opinions on each wife
So ive rewatched the entire series until now and i have a couple of opinions lmk if you agree or disagree!
Meri- The catfish situation was cheating. I think that it was her saving grace in the public eye because most likely it would’ve remained an emotional affair until she had the courage to leave. The catfish turning out to be a vindictive woman helped turn Meri into the victim but we have to call it was it was, emotional cheating. Meri fully fell for a man whom she believed was Sam. I do think that after this, her relationship with Kody was as good as dead. Some people do bring up how Kody was married to other women but Meri signed up and fully believed in the religion and marriage as is. I do believe that Kody did alienate affection from her, I also believe that she did it because she was lonely and I do sympathize with her but to call it anything less than an emotional affair is giving her a pass. Also, her behavior towards the family that we the viewers got access to see was not the nicest. Her attitude did not come off as someone who was pleasant to be around (sometimes) and I understand why Christine and Janelle kept their distance. It seemed as though you’d have to walk on eggshells around her so to say that she felt lonely whilst treating other family members the way that she did seems to be an example of cause and effect. I do think more factors contribute to it but this is my opinion on Meri. I don’t think she’s all bad, I do wish her well I think Kody wasted her time but I also think that she was complacent with him because how many times did he have to show her that he didn’t have any regard for her. Especially before he finally vocalized it.
Janelle- Janelle coming in and marrying Kody after being married to Meris brother was a recipe for disaster. I do think Janelle is level headed but I also think she had the hots for Kody. In the beginning of her time with the family she said that Meri was tense and displayed jealousy and to be quite honest I can’t say I blame Meri it would definitely be a mindfuck to have my sister in law become my sister wife. Janelle seems to believe in the doctrine the most hence her respect for the religion I think that if things were different and Kody didn’t turn out the way he did and treat their children so awfully she would likely stick around to the end.
Christine- I think Christine thought she would be the last wife and never expected Kody would find a younger, thinner wife whom he would fall head over heels for. Christine seemed to think that she would end up being the favorite wife as she was introduced from the first season and the “fun wife” Her resentment towards Kody and Robyn’s marriage is totally valid. She was freshly postpartum and her husband left her to go on a too long honeymoon and abandoned her. I think Christine may have a tendency to play up for the cameras hence a change in her voice when talking about certain things however I’m very happy that she had the courage to leave and try something new. When I look back on old clips now I can almost feel how suffocating it was to have every decision be a group decision and it seemed like Christine opposed a lot of the family decisions because they always strayed from what she seemed to be comfortable with.
Robyn- I think Robyn talked out of both sides of her mouth and ended up with no allies. She claimed to have been for the family and wanted to be accepted whilst doing the bare minimum to be accepted. I’m aware that Robyn had no control over becoming the favorite however Robyn fully allowed Kody to do certain things that she knew would negatively impact the other wives/ make them feel a kind of way. She will let Kody do something that benefits only her, not speak up and then defend his actions. To an extent I do think that she wanted the family but she wanted the family as is, as in still benefitting mainly her while everyone else accepted whatever they could get. I don’t think Robyn is inherently bad but I do think she has selfish tendencies because anyone who genuinely wanted things to change for the better would not have just let Kody speak but she would’ve spoken to the family members directly to whom Kody had negatively impacted. Since she did not she was viewed as complacent in his acts.
Since the unfortunate and tragic passing of Garrison I do hope that reconciliation of the family is possibly because it’s terrible to see that in times of serious grief members cannot come together, but I’m not sure if the acts of Kody are forgivable in the eyes of their children. Only time will tell, either way I’m wishing the divorced wives a refreshed new life that they feel proud of.