Meri Brown has a complicated relationship with her husband and his other wives in Sister Wives, but lately, Meri has been a fierce proponent for her controversial sister wife, Robyn Brown. Although Meri and Robyn are on the opposite ends of the spectrum when it comes to receiving love from their mutual spouse, Kody Brown, the original sister wife has done her best to dispel Robyn's haters online. From her efforts to get on Kody's good side to her inability to escape the plural marriage, here's why Sister Wives fans think Meri is so protective of Robyn.
Meri and Kody's marriage is arguably the most tragic relationship featured in Sister Wives, and although it isn't Robyn's fault, the decline of the original pair's relationship began with Robyn's induction into the Brown clan. Meri was there for the start of Kody's massive polygamous family when they got married in April 1990. After 20 years, Kody added Robyn to the ever-expanding family. Almost immediately, it was apparent that Kody only cared about his relationship with Robyn. Throughout the past decade, Meri's confessed to feeling unloved by her husband as he's offered all of his affection to Robyn. Still, Meri remains a loyal friend and polygamist partner to Robyn.
Although Meri might be able to let go of any resentment she might have for Robyn due to her idyllic relationship with Kody, the Sister Wives fanbase hasn't been as forgiving. During the past decade she's starred as a reality television personality, Robyn has been ripped to shreds by the Brown family's followers. Fans argue that Robyn's control of Kody has facilitated his neglectful behavior toward his first three wives. Viewers are so passionate about their disdain for Robyn that their critical comments resulted in the star retiring from social media years ago. While Robyn might not be available online anymore, fans have continued to share their negative thoughts about the reality star on social media. Surprisingly, Meri is the first to stick up for Robyn online. A Reddit user shared that Meri recently commented on Instagram, "I don't hate on Robyn. Everyone else does..."
Defending Robyn online is one of the least popular actions a Sister Wives star can take, but some fans think they understand Meri's compulsion to stand up for her polygamist partner. Most viewers believe that Meri has been manipulated by Kody and Robyn to be their strongest supporter. Even though Kody's restrictive COVID-19 rules have left Meri abandoned by her family for months, the first sister wife has only become more dedicated to her husband's cause. Fans think Meri is so desperate to get back in Kody and Robyn's good graces that she takes up for the shunned sister wive online. A viewer assessed, "[Meri's] living on [a] plane of manipulation and derangement." Other fans argue that Meri's more aware of her situation than she lets on and think her reminder that "everyone" hates Robyn was intentionally shady. One commenter asserted that Meri's comment was "such a backhanded 'compliment.'"
Meri and Robyn haven't always had the best comradery in Sister Wives, but Meri has made a noble effort to stand by her unpopular sister wife's side. Whether she's protecting Robyn to look good to Kody or she's trying to point out just how much viewers dislike her, Meri's proven that she's eager to go to bat for Robyn. Unfortunately, Meri isn't likely to change any Sister Wives fans' opinion on Kody's favorite spouse.
Sources: ComesandGoes31/Reddit, Kookookahchoo/Reddit, Jaded-Saint/Reddit