It isn’t a big Brown family secret that Janelle Brown and Meri Brown were not best friends. Kody Brown’s second wife entered the family after marrying Meri’s brother. I can only imagine abandoning Meri’s sibling for the father of 18 was a hard pill for the reality star to swallow. The Sister Wives stars were polar opposites, and it led to some resentment. They were not the best of friends. So when Janelle decides to ditch her marriage to Kody, most viewers think it is normal for her to leave behind Meri, too.
The Sister Wives stars did not get along
In the Brown family’s book Becoming Sister Wives, viewers are given an inside look at the feud between Meri and Janelle. The two moms never developed a true friendship, but Janelle and Kody connected on a “cerebral level.” The memoir mentions that Meri and Janelle often become embroiled in intense fights. Meri even admitted that she was “harsh and aggressive” towards her sister wife. Over the years, their relationship grew frostier and was only fostered by their children since they were raised together.
Their primary issues seemed to stem from Meri forming a close friendship with Kody’s favorite wife, Robyn Brown. During a podcast, Janelle once shared, “But I know she and Robyn were always pretty close to a lot of things. So I don’t know if she was separate. I mean, she and Kody had been estranged for many, many years.” However, what seemed to form a connection between the two was their mutual distrust of Kody. Meri even brought up their issues during a recent episode. She shared, “I feel very peaceful about our situation, but he doesn’t. Some of the things that he’s saying are really, really, really mean. He clearly has a lot of internal [feelings] that he still needs to work on here.”
Janelle Brown is trying to help Meri Brown
During the mid-season finale of Sister Wives, Janelle released some pent-up emotion toward Kody. However, she wasn’t full of malice as she compared her marriage and the other sister wives’ marriages to a “business” deal. While talking to the TLC cameras, the mother of six noted, “I’m so, so glad Meri understands why it’s wise to have a lawyer because we’re not family anymore.” The 55-year-old continued “I mean, this is people now who are trying to dissolve a business that went bad, basically.”
Meri and Janelle were able to come together and speak about the possibility of hiring a lawyer. The Lizzie’s Heritage Inn owner noted “I feel like Kody and Robyn probably have some plan of what they want to do and how they want to handle it.” During her one-on-one with producers, she added, “I think that Janelle has some sort of plan, and I know that I do as well. And none of us are talking to each other because none of us trust each other.” For her part, Janelle reported that she would be hiring a lawyer. She felt it was time for “somebody to be pushing her interests.” The two who haven’t agreed on much agreed to both hire legal counsel.
Janelle Brown and Meri Brown agree they are due operations
In another confessional, Janelle broke down the crux of the Coyote Pass problem: “So, we own, in total, about 14 acres out at Coyote Pass. The way it’s titled — if we were to sell it right now — Meri would get compensated for, like, an acre and a half of the whole 14.” And as Sister Wives viewers already know Kody has told Meri he doesn’t feel she is entitled to an equal portion of the land. “This whole conversation really hinges on Kody. He’s the one that is on all the titles. He’s the one that has to make changes in ownership. Are you going to show up and divide these fairly?” Janelle notes, “What are we doing? Because he’s very wishy-washy. He says something. Then you don’t hear from him forever. I don’t know… there’s no reassurance that he’s going to be kind.”
Janelle has every right to feel that she is no longer dealing with family since her divorce. Kody has done nothing but bad mouth her to the cameras. And while Meri and Janelle do currently hold a united front that bond isn’t promised to last. Janelle is doing what she should be doing and fending for herself. Janelle owes no allegiance to Meri or the rest. Finally, she is taking matters into her own hands and is ready to stand up for what she rightfully deserves.
Sister Wives is available to stream on TLC.
TELL US – DO YOU THINK JANELLE IS WRONG FOR WANTING TO LEAVE MERI AND KODY BEHIND?