Sister Wives SHOCKER: Janelle Calls Out Robyn’s Sick Power Games—‘She’s a Narcissist Just Like Kody!’
The Role of the Second Wife: Robin as a Go-Between and Perpetrator
The anecdote from Christine Brown’s book about Robin questioning her on why she stopped giving Kody massages is highly revealing. It confirms that Kody and Robin were discussing intimate details of his relationships with the other wives.
Breach of Trust: The wives had an agreement not to discuss what happened in the bedroom. Kody violated this trust by discussing his sex life with Christine to Robin, and Robin violated Christine’s privacy by confronting her.
The Go-Between/Enforcer Role: Christine quickly realized that Robin served as a go-between (or flying monkey in psychological terms), running information back to Kody, often with a “twist.” By confronting Christine about the massages, Robin acted as an enforcer, applying pressure and judgment on Kody’s behalf.
Massages and Control: You rightly point out the disturbing parallel between Kody’s demand for massages and the actions of figures like Jeffrey Epstein, where the seemingly innocuous demand for a “massage” is a mechanism of control, submission, and power over women.
🔺 Psychological Dynamics: Triangulation and the Victim/Savior Complex
Janelle and her friends describe a toxic dynamic between Kody and Robin that fits classic patterns of narcissistic abuse.
Triangulation
Triangulation occurs when one person inserts a third party into a dyadic relationship to manage tension, deflect blame, or gain control.
The Mechanism: As you explained, Robin frequently plays the “helpless person that needs to be rescued” (the victim). She portrays the other wives (and their children) as the enemy, the “villainous women” who are causing her pain and trauma.
Kody as the Savior: This triggers Kody’s desire to be the “hero” (“tying on his cape and riding on that white horse”). He rushes to Robin’s defense, which effectively isolates him from the other women and demolishes those relationships.
The Result: The division created means that Robin’s own manipulative actions or bad decisions (e.g., financial spending, causing strife) are ignored, as Kody is distracted by fighting the “villains.”
Equally Yoked (Malignantly)
Janelle’s use of the term “equally yolked” is significant. While traditionally a positive Christian term meaning sharing the same values and goals, Janelle uses it to suggest Kody and Robin share the same “nefarious goals” or “agenda.”
Mutual Ego Feeding: Janelle concludes that they “feed each other’s ego.” Robin gains power by giving Kody the role of the rescuer, and Kody, a self-proclaimed hero, gains narcissistic supply by saving his “helpless” wife. They are equally invested in maintaining this toxic dynamic.
⛓️ Polygamy, Trafficking, and the Hierarchy
Your comparison of the polygamous dynamic to trafficking is a critical, though difficult, point of analysis.
Victim and Perpetrator: In polygamy, women are often victims—groomed into the system as children and taught subservience. However, as they age and gain seniority, they can also become perpetrators—using their power within the system to exert control, pressure new wives, or enlist their help in recruitment.
The Hierarchy: Just as a secondary figure like Ghislaine Maxwell gained power by serving a trafficker, the “headwife” or favored wife gains the most power (nicer home, more time with the husband, better resources for her children) by reinforcing the man’s system and, at times, acting as his recruiter or enforcer against the other women. This power dynamic incentivizes perpetration.
