Overview - Sister Wives

Overview

Husband Kody Brown, along with his four wives (only one of which is legally married to Kody) and their combined 18 children, attempts to navigate life as a "normal" family in a society that shuns their lifestyle.

Seasons

• Name: Specials

  Episode: 18

  Date first aired: 2010-11-21

• Name: Season 1

  Episode: 7

  The season premiere introduced viewers to Kody Brown and his three wives, Meri, Janelle, and Christine, and their twelve children, all of whom lived in a ranch-style home with three interconnected apartments. It also chronicled Kody's dating and engagement to Robyn Sullivan, who herself has three children, marking the first time in 16 years Kody had courted another wife. The new relationship creates insecurity and jealousy among the other three wives, but they ultimately accept her and welcome her into the family. During the fourth episode of the season, Christine gives birth to her sixth child, Truely, which brings the family to 16 children including Robyn's three kids. Later, Kody and Meri go to Mexico to celebrate their twentieth wedding anniversary, where Meri discussed her sadness about her infertility problems and the jealousy that has arisen from Kody's engagement to Robyn. Kody proposes in vitro fertilisation, but she turns down the idea as she is only interested in a naturally occurring conception. As Robyn's wedding approaches, the three sister wives help Robyn prepare, and they begin to bond. However, Kody upsets his wives when he reveals he secretly chose Robyn's wedding dress himself, which makes Christine feel so betrayed that she angrily walks away in mid-interview. Kody eventually apologizes, and the five reconcile. The first season finale ends with the wedding of Kody and Robyn, where Meri, Janelle, and Christine present her with a Claddagh ring to welcome her into the family.

  Date first aired: 2010-09-26

• Name: Season 2

  Episode: 23

  Season two goes deeper into this unconventional--yet somehow relatable--family as they experience the ups and downs of living a plural lifestyle, from the Browns' bold decision to "come out" as polygamists on national television to the changes brought on by their recently extended family. After learning that they are under investigation by the police for their lifestyle, Sister Wives now follows the Browns as they try to go on with their lives - by visiting the family ranch in Wyoming, planning a Halloween celebration and taking the brood on a winter cabin trip. But throughout season two, the tension mounts steadily until finally--fearing that their happy, loving family could be torn apart--the Browns make an enormous decision that will change their lives forever.

  Date first aired: 2011-03-13

• Name: Season 3

  Episode: 19

  The twenty one episode season mainly dealt with the family's inability to be a cohesive unit while living in four separate homes. Meri explains more about the infertility problems she has experienced, while Christine discloses more on her jealousy of Robyn. The season returned from hiatus on November 18, 2012, to the Brown family still discussing their options into moving their family onto one property, and invest in a cul-de-sac where they can build four homes. It is more evident this season that living in separate homes is tearing the family apart. Towards the end of the season, the family plans a three-day trip to Nauvoo, Illinois, the birthplace of American polygamy. In the last episode on December 30, 2012, the family also deals with the upcoming departure to college of the eldest Brown child, Logan.

  Date first aired: 2012-05-13

• Name: Season 4

  Episode: 18

  After living in separate rental homes for the past two years, the Browns are one step closer to fulfilling their dream of being together under one roof, moving into four adjacent houses in the same neighborhood. But now they have four large mortgages and a struggling start-up jewelry business. Meanwhile, Meri finally decides on whether or not to accept Robyn's offer to be her surrogate, but will Kody agree with her decision? And as more kids prepare to leave the nest, Kody and the wives have a surprise in store that will rebuild the closeness the family once shared back in Utah.

  Date first aired: 2013-07-21

• Name: Season 5

  Episode: 15

  Season 5 begins with two daughters graduating high school, Mykelti and Madison. The grown ups plan to lip sync a song to celebrate, but it brings out some negative feelings for Janelle, who is not comfortable being so outgoing and admits to being embarrassed in public by the others' behavior. And a deeper issue of feeling like she's not heard bubbles to the surface and she sees a therapist to discuss that along with her challenging relationship with first wife Meri. On a business level, the family discusses whether to turn down investors' money and keep full ownership of Sisterwives' Closet and whether to keep the products all their own creations or branch out and resale other artists' designs and products. Christine's mother moves in with her in Las Vegas, and in episode four, the Browns allow two anthropologists to live with them for two days to see the inner workings of polygamy, an arrangement that could either put their lifestyle in a positive or negative light. Finally, after five years of mental deliberation, Meri files for legal divorce from Kody. Her alleged reason for the divorce is so Kody can adopt Robyn's three children from her previous marriage. By the end of the season, Meri and Kody maintained that they would continue their relationship, although some reports claim Meri will not be appearing in the series' upcoming sixth season.

  Date first aired: 2014-06-08

• Name: Season 6

  Episode: 12

  Kody and the sister wives - Meri, Janelle, Christine and Robyn - are at a crossroads in their relationship. While the divorce from Kody was supposed to be just a document shuffle, it has become nothing like what the family thought it would be. So much has changed and the whole family struggles to figure out how to move forward. In addition to the shifting family structure, the Browns begin their journey to legally adopt Robyn's children from a previous marriage. Kody also takes his youngest daughters to the beach in an attempt to bond more with them, and Robyn announces her pregnancy to the family, kicking off the countdown to her due date.

  Date first aired: 2015-09-13

• Name: Season 7

  Episode: 9

  Kody and the sister wives are put to the test like never before after Meri confesses to being catfished into an online relationship with a woman impersonating a man. The family—devastated and confused—struggles to come to terms with the situation and enlists the help of their therapist to begin the long healing process and build back the trust that was lost. Despite this family conflict, there is still plenty of celebrating within the Brown household as wedding bells and a new baby are in the near future. Madison takes her relationship with Caleb to the next level, announcing to the family that she is engaged and moving to Montana to be closer to her fiancé. Robyn and Kody have the final meeting with their midwife before the birth, and they do their best to prepare Solomon for his baby sister while the rest of the family waits to welcome the Brown's 18th child.

  Date first aired: 2016-05-08

• Name: Season 8

  Episode: 12

  While Janelle's daughter Madison's wedding prep is in full swing for the big day, Christine's daughter, Mykelti, also announces she wants to get engaged, and to a guy who she met just five months earlier. The catfishing incident looms over the family as Mariah is still furious with her mother. Kody is forced to deal with the hard truth that his own relationship with his first wife is in shambles. Meri visits another victim of the same person who catfished her and gets closer to the cause of the problems between Kody and herself that allowed this to happen in the first place. The family retreats to a remote lodge, high in the mountains of Utah, to try to pull it all together. Maybe the high mountain air will bring the family to its senses... or maybe not.

  Date first aired: 2016-11-25