Sister Wives season 18 has delved into the relationships that Kody Brown’s adult children share with their father, revealing the difficulties that the Brown children have in communicating with the patriarch of the family. Throughout the run of Sister Wives, Kody has been staunch in his belief that he’s a good parent. Unfortunately, his actions have proven otherwise time and time again, showing him choosing himself over his children and allowing his emotions to guide him into rash, harsh decisions that make his relationships with his kids impossible to navigate. While Kody has been shown to have moments of positivity with his kids, they are few and far between.

After several seasons of Kody’s marriages to Robyn Brown, Christine Brown, Janelle Brown, and Meri Brown taking the forefront on Sister Wives, many of Kody’s older children have found their relationships with their father irrevocably changed. Kody, who’s divorced from all his wives but Robyn, has actively been in an argument with several of his sons for the duration of 2022 and 2023, but the nature of their disagreement wasn’t clear until recent episodes of Sister Wives season 18 exposed what truly happened to create distance between Kody, Gabe Brown, Garrison Brown, and several of the other Brown siblings.

Gabe, Garrison, & Gwendlyn Feel Neglected By Kody

After years of feeling like their father wasn’t an active participant in their lives, Gabe, Garrison, and many of the other Brown children didn’t want to foster relationships with Kody anymore. While they wanted to have a baseline relationship with their father, it was clear that making that work wasn’t an easy feat. Kody, who has 5 children with his remaining wife Robyn, was prioritizing his relationships in his immediate family while snubbing those in the families he had with Christine, Janelle, and Meri. With Kody not being a distinct part in their lives, many of the older Brown children have simply started operating without the need for his presence.

During a meal at Garrison’s house on Sister Wives season 18 episode 9, he shared some of the particulars about his relationship with Kody, along with Gabe and Gwendolyn who are living with Garrison. The three spoke with their mothers, Janelle and Christine, about how difficult it’s been navigating a relationship with Kody over the years. After feeling like their father was absent due to the sheer number of children in their family, they also felt like Kody has had a preference in the family he spends time with since Robyn joined the Brown family with her children in 2014.

Kody Has Always Preferred Robyn & Her Children

While Garrison was speaking about Kody’s attitude towards him and his siblings, he explained that it’s clear Kody has always had “a preference” when it came to his wife and children. When Garrison, Gabe, Gwendolyn, and several of their siblings were younger, Robyn wasn’t in the picture. The kids got more equal attention from Kody and their mothers, and they had each other to turn to when things got tough. The Brown siblings were far closer when they were growing up, and since the beginning of Sister Wives, it appears there’s been a shift in the dynamic of the family, especially when it comes to Kody’s interactions with them.

Kody’s relationship with Robyn has been all-encompassing, and it’s been obvious to both his ex-wives and his children. Garrison explained that Kody prefers Robyn and her children, which would be fine if he spoke about it honestly. Instead, the Brown siblings all feel slighted by the idea that Kody consistently tells them he’d like to spend time with them or foster closer relationships but doesn’t go about doing so at all. The relationship between Robyn and Kody, which all the siblings and Kody’s ex-wives have clocked to be closer than any of their previous relationships, is clearly the one leading the charge, leaving everyone else very little leeway.

Gabe Explained Robyn's Self-Victimization Is Hard To Deal With

As most Sister Wives viewers know, Robyn has a habit of making victimizing herself in nearly every situation. Regardless of how minimal her involvement is, Robyn can morph and manipulate every possible issue into something that’s been personally set up against her. Even in the most mundane moments, Robyn makes it clear that she’s the one who’s going to be hurt by what others do, no matter how minimal of an impact others’ actions would typically have on her. While Robyn doesn’t seem to appear to be aware of how often she does this, it’s been abundantly clear to the Brown family since Kody began courting her in 2010.

During the Sister Wives season 18 conversation, Gabe explained to his mother, Christine, and his siblings that Robyn’s self-victimization has been one of the toughest things for him to deal with in trying to have a better relationship with Kody. Instead of pushing Kody to have a better relationship with all his kids, Robyn has inserted herself into his arguments and, at times, made things even harder to navigate. Gabe shared that after Robyn inserted herself into a conversation between the Brown siblings, he’s felt more distant from several of his siblings as well as Kody and Robyn, with both Garrison and Gwendlyn agreeing.

Robyn Has Made Kody's Issues With His Kids About Her

During the most recent episode of Sister Wives, Robyn shared in an interview segment just how hurt she’s been by the way the older Brown children have acted towards her in recent years, especially during and after the COVID-19 pandemic. Robyn shared that Kody’s relationships with his children has been tough in recent years, but she’s been trying to ensure that her kids' relationships aren’t impacted. In a tearful moment, Robyn shared that she feels slighted by the older Brown kids, especially considering she thought she had a decent relationship with them in the past.

Robyn explained that the problems she’s faced with Kody’s kids in recent years have pushed her to protect her own children. She’s isolated her kids from Kody’s other kids, and throughout the episode, viewers get to hear some of Kody and Robyn’s daughters discuss how hard it’s been to ignore their siblings in public settings, as most of them still attend the same schools. While the issue has been between Kody and his children, Robyn has chosen to make the entire problem about how she feels instead of supporting her husband and the family as a whole.

The Brown Children Are All In Agreement About Kody & Robyn's Behavior

Towards the end of Sister Wives season 18 episode 9, Gabe, Garrison, and Gwendlyn confirmed that the majority of the Brown children share the same sentiment about Kody and Robyn’s behavior. They feel that Kody’s favored Robyn and their kids in the past, and Robyn has taken any drama possible and created a version of it that makes her and her children seem like the victims. While Sister Wives viewers were already aware, hearing that the Brown family feels the same way is a refreshing confirmation.

Sister Wives airs Sundays at 10 p.m. EST on TLC.