The breakdown of the Brown family can be attributed to Kody Brown and his decisions. His actions and choices played a significant role in the eventual end of three marriages within the family.
When the reality show Sister Wives made its debut in 2010, viewers were introduced to Kody Brown and his unconventional family consisting of three wives and 13 children. However, over the years, their once-tight-knit family has begun to unravel. The turning point came when Kody welcomed a fourth wife, Robyn Brown, into the mix. He embraced her three children as his own and together they added two more kids to the clan, bringing the total to 18 children.
The cracks in the Brown family started to show when Christine Brown, Kody’s third wife of 25 years, decided to part ways with him during the 17th season of Sister Wives. Following Christine’s departure in 2021, Janelle Brown, Kody’s second wife of 30 years, also made the difficult decision to leave in 2022. Finally, Meri Brown, Kody’s first wife, grew weary of feeling neglected and opted to end her relationship with him and the plural marriage altogether. This leaves Robyn, Kody’s newest and fourth wife, as the last woman standing, putting the blame squarely on Kody for the dissolution of his once cohesive family.
The power struggles between Kody and his wives Christine and Janelle have been well-documented, showcasing the challenges and complexities of living in a plural marriage dynamic.
Over time, Kody found himself complaining about how in a plural marriage, each wife ends up running her own household. With Kody being around only sporadically, the wives naturally became more independent and accustomed to making decisions for themselves and their own children. This led to Kody feeling resentful towards Christine and Janelle for making choices without consulting him, causing tension within the family. Adding to the strain, Christine yearned for more emotional and physical closeness from Kody, while Janelle struggled to keep the marriage going with minimal support from him. The situation was further complicated by the challenges they faced at Coyote Pass.
Fed up with constantly relocating and residing in different residences, the Browns made the decision to invest in a spacious piece of land at Coyote Pass in Flagstaff, Arizona. Their main objective was to construct a home where they could all reside harmoniously as a united family. Nevertheless, this purchase only ended up stirring up more issues within the family. Some of the wives were not enthusiastic about the idea of living together under one roof. In an attempt to compromise, Kody divided the land into separate lots so each wife could build her own house. However, this decision led to further tensions as disagreements arose over who received the most desirable lot.
When we first met the Browns, we found them living in a spacious Utah home owned by a polygamist. The house had separate suites with kitchens for each of the three wives and their 13 children. Concerned about potential legal issues due to polygamy being unlawful in the state, Kody made the tough decision to relocate his family into four separate homes. Unfortunately, this move ended up causing a rift within the Brown family. Despite Utah’s decision to decriminalize polygamy in 2021, Janelle pleaded with Kody to move back, but he was hesitant, making it challenging to bring the family back together.
5 The Move from Suburbia
The Browns eventually found a new home in Las Vegas, Nevada, with each wife having her own house on a quiet cul-de-sac. This setup was even better than their shared house in Utah, as Kody could easily visit each wife and their children by just crossing the street. However, Kody’s fear of Nevada’s stance on polygamy led him to uproot the family once again and move to Arizona. This decision turned out to be a big mistake, as it meant that the family would never be able to live close together again.
Neglecting Meri in the midst of bringing a new wife into his plural marriage completely shifted the dynamics within Kody’s family. As he began openly favoring Robyn and spending more time at her house, the other three wives quickly noticed the difference in his relationships. The special connection he shared with Robyn only fueled the jealousy and resentment Christine felt, leading to a rift between them. With Kody’s attention focused on Robyn, his relationships with his other wives and children suffered from neglect and strain.
Kody’s neglect of Meri had been a lingering issue even prior to marrying Robyn, but it escalated once they started living separately. As their only child together had grown up and left home, Kody found less incentive to stay at Meri’s house and began to neglect her even more. Rather than cherishing their marriage and prioritizing Meri’s happiness, he increasingly disregarded her and consistently turned her down.
This mistreatment of his first wife not only strained their relationship but also set a precedent with his other wives as he neglected them in favor of spending more time with Robyn. Despite Kody’s unfair treatment, Meri remained loyal even after he admitted he no longer found her attractive. It became clear that Kody could never truly treat her like a proper wife.
On top of these existing issues, the outbreak of COVID-19 only added more strain to their already troubled relationships.
The Brown family was already facing challenges before the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The outbreak brought to light existing tensions within the family, causing rifts to deepen. Each household had their own level of comfort with risk, with Kody being the most cautious. This led to him limiting contact with certain family members for extended periods. This cautious approach created friction between Kody and some of his sons, whom he believed were not taking enough precautions. The situation even resulted in Kody missing his daughter Ysabel Brown’s scoliosis surgery due to his fear of traveling.
When the holiday season arrived, Kody set strict COVID guidelines for family gatherings. These rules included sanitizing groceries, changing clothes upon entering the house, and quarantining mail for 24 hours. Some family members found it difficult to comply with these regulations, leading to Kody refusing to see them during Thanksgiving and Christmas. This marked the first time the family had been apart during the holiday season, altering their traditions and relationships permanently.
Regarding Robyn’s marriage to Kody
When Kody wed Robyn, it marked a 16-year gap since the Browns welcomed a new wife into the fold. Naturally, this change stirred up the status quo, but Kody failed to adequately adjust to having a fourth wife. For years, he grappled with trying to meet the needs of three women, making it no surprise that adding a fourth wife stretched him even thinner. Kody should have taken a more realistic look at his capabilities before expanding his already strained plural marriage. As season 18 of Sister Wives wrapped up, Kody and Robyn unintentionally found themselves in a monogamous relationship.
