Product Details

• Actors: Cody Brown
• Directors: Figure 8 Films
• Format: Color, NTSC
• Language: English
• Region: Region 1 (U.S. and Canada only. Read more about DVD formats.)
  
• Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
• Number of discs: 1
• Rated: NR (Not Rated)
• Studio: Discovery - Gaiam
• DVD Release Date: April 5, 2011
• Run Time: 240 minutes
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (15 customer reviews)
• ASIN: B004JR3OW6
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #88,154 in Movies & TV (See Top 100 in Movies & TV)

Editorial Reviews

t first glance, the Browns are a typical big American family, but as Kody, father and husband explains; I fell in love, fell in love again, and fell in love again. Kody Brown, is a polygamist with three wives (Wife #1, Meri; Wife #2 Janelle; Wife #3 Christine) and 13 rambunctious kids. This series presents a fresh look at a lifestyle that has been mired in secrecy and misunderstanding. Shattering stereotypes, the Browns show viewers a type of polygamy that has never been seen before - a lifestyle so close to mainstream America, yet so seemingly well adjusted.

1 Meet Kody & the Wives
Long: Meet the Browns, a seemingly regular family on the outside, but with a twist once you step inside their home. Things get even more
extraordinary when we learn that they are on the verge of another huge change that could transform the family s dynamic forever.

2 Courting a Fourth Wife
Long: Kody heads south to court his potential fourth wife, Robyn. Meanwhile back home, the wives express their true feelings about their new possible
sister wife as they make preparations for Christine s new baby.

3 Wives on the Move
Long: Kody and his teenage daughters throw a birthday party for his new fiancée, Robyn. Meanwhile, 1st wife Meri struggles with feelings of jealousy
as the whole Brown clan moves Robyn and her anxious kids closer to the family home.

4 Third Wife in Labor
Long: Kody's fiancée Robyn helps out with the kids while Kody and his pregnant third wife Christine go to the hospital. A week overdue, they must make
an important decision on whether or not to induce labor.

5 1st Wife's 20th Anniversary
Long: While the three wives buy a friendship ring for Kody's fiancée Robyn, Kody prepares to celebrate his 20th Anniversary with his first wife, Meri.
But when nothing goes as planned, will Kody end up in the dog house?

6 A Fourth Wife to Be
Long: As the wedding day nears, the three wives help fiancée Robyn pick a wedding dress, a cake, and a venue for their unique polygamist wedding
reception. Meanwhile, it s Janelle s birthday and Kody has a special trip planned just for the two of them.

7 Four Wives and Counting...
Long: The big day is finally here! Follow Kody and his wives as they make Robyn officially wife number four. See this extraordinary family as they
celebrate the newest additions to their family and prepare to embark on a new chapter in their lives.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars One Man, Three Wives, One Fiancee (I Can't Even Count The Children)--Fascinating Topic With Superficial Execution January 20, 2011

By K. Harris HALL OF FAMETOP 10 REVIEWER

Format:DVD

In a bold programming stroke, TLC flouted convention and dropped "Sister Wives" onto its 2010 TV schedule. A reality TV show in which the subject matter is considered both taboo and illegal is a daring bit of maneuvering that might have garnered TLC more press than actual viewers though. In truth, I don't watch many of these types of reality show--but I suspect people tune in because they identify with the participants or because the antics are so outrageous, they can't wait to see what happens next. As an avid fan of "Big Love" (who despite a rocky last season is TV's most consistently underrated drama) and Brady Udall's "The Lonely Polygamist" (one of my top five books of 2010), I threw caution to the wind with "Sister Wives." It might be interesting to note, at this juncture, that this TV show did open up a Utah legal investigation into the Kody Brown clan and they have subsequently relocated to an unspecified domicile in Nevada. Such is the price of fame!

I suppose the primary goal of "Sister Wives" is to show that polygamists lead lives much like you or I. The show is structured around Kody Brown and his three families that live under one roof. However, much of the season's dramatic arc comes from Kody courting and marrying a fourth wife. While I found the whole situation slightly distasteful and I didn't particularly like Kody, I'm going to be very politically correct and try to evaluate the merits of the show on their own rights. However, if you don't care for Kody or his wives, let's just say that there are really no more merits. What is lacking from "Sister Wives" is any sort of narrative drive--nothing ever really happens. Heck, if the wedding wasn't part of the deal, I fear we would have been hopelessly stranded in inertia. The interchangeable interview scenes are so incredibly repetitive--we get it already! So intent on being absolutely normal and palatable to a mass audience, the show loses any sense of real life.

The most real moments in "Sister Wives" come from Wife #2 Janelle and Wife #3 Christine. Wife #1 Meri has a lot going on in her thoughts, but is fairly careful about what she allows to make it onto TV. Wife #4 Robyn is sweet enough in a brainwashed kind of way. Christine is easily the most opinionated of the wives. She has structured this existence to her specifications (she only wanted to be a third wife), so an introduction of a new sister wife does elicit some hostility and jealousy--however rationalized these emotions are in interview segments. And then we've got Janelle, who works full time outside of the home, and misses out on many reindeer games. What is fascinating about Janelle's home is that her teenage son is left to raise her brood of kids. All the women proclaim how they are mothers to all the children, it just struck me as oddly cruel to have this boy sacrifice his youth when so many "parents" were present.

Ultimately, though, whether you like Kody and clan or not--the show suffers in lack of real content. I came in with a high degree of curiosity, but any episode is pretty interchangeable to any other episode. If they all insist they're happy--that's fine, I'll believe them. But how many times do I have to be told that in the course of the 7 episodes (and a Honeymoon special)? I may be completely wrong and you may love the Brown family, I just found it too mundane to qualify for entertainment. My suggestion would be to watch one episode elsewhere before investing in the DVD season! That way you know how much further you'd like to go with "Sister Wives." KGHarris, 1/11.

15 of 19 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Man and wife and wife and wife... January 19, 2011

By E. A Solinas HALL OF FAMETOP 100 REVIEWERVINE™ VOICE

Format:DVD

There are reality shows for minor celebrities, musicians, tattoo artists, rich brats, people with huge families, lesbians, superheroes, and presidential wannabes.

And with "Sister Wives Season 1," you can add polygamists (or rather, polygynists) to the long list of slightly-off-the-norm people who have put themselves on reality TV. And while this show initially seems like an interesting glimpse into a family with, um, unconventional marriage habits, it starts getting disturbing and creepy as we see more of the family patriarch.

That would be Kody Brown, who belongs to a sect that splintered off the Mormon Church about a century ago (they share many of the tenets, but still practice polgamy). He lives in an enormous house with his three wives -- bubbly Christine, down-to-earth Meri, and earth-mama Janelle -- and their vast brood of children.

Over the course of the show, a few subplots crop up. Kody courts and becomes engaged to the weepy Robyn. Christine gives birth to her sixth baby, Truely. And as the family prepares for a new wedding, Kody's obvious favoritism makes some waves among his other wives -- especially when he takes Robyn on an 11-day California honeymoon.

I don't support polygamy, but I made my best effort to go into "Sister Wives" with an open mind, since I know that some people can make unconventional lifestyles work for them. And "Sister Wives" does live up to its name, since Janelle, Meri and Christine are all likable women who have a strong bond of trust, love and honesty with one another. It's also fascinating to see how the children in such a lifestyle turn out, and the attitudes they have.

But after a few episodes, the cracks in the "plig" lifestyle start to show. The biggest problem is Kody. This guy is CREEPY. While he presents himself as a good ol' country boy with lots of love to spread around, he comes across as very controlling and insensitive. Whenever one of the wives speaks of their life in a less-than-effusive manner, he fixes his icy, beady eyes on them and just STARES coldly.

To make matters worse, he's a huge hypocrite (he claims the idea of a woman with two sex partners is "vulgar," "sickening" and "wrong to God and nature"), hugely insensitive, neglects his three wives in favor of a skinny young woman, and seems intent on keeping his wives stuck to him with repeated pregnancies.

Here's an example: When Meri (who wants a college degree) tearfully admits that her only daughter is the only thing keeping her married, you can see the gears turning in his head: "Oooh, I better knock her up so she doesn't leave me when the kid goes off to the Naval Academy." Sure enough, a few episodes later he tries to convince her to have in vitro fertilization, and is upset when she says no.

And as likable as the three main women are, it's kind of disturbing to hear them dismissing their own feelings, the downsides of polygamy, and Kody's insensitivity. They make so many excuses (oh, Robyn "needs" a week and a half honeymoon and a huge wedding) that you just want to hammer on the TV screen and shout, "Grow a backbone and stop making excuses, ladies!"

"Sister Wives Season 1" is a twofold enlightenment -- it gives you insights into the dynamics and family life of the "sister wives," but it also shows you the misogyny and creepiness that often squats in the middle of their family.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars an interesting way to spend a few hours November 20, 2011

By Amber

Format:DVD

I must admit, I watched this DVD all in one night. There's something about the life style that's intriguing and hard to stop watching. It leaves many questions though, which was the reason for the three stars. The big one being, WHY? It's never explained, partially or in full, why he has so many wives. I would love to have been filled in on what particular beliefs they have (in their mormon faith) and what so many marriages are supposed to achieve. I also thought it was a bit humorous when the first wife askes her husband to imagine her flirting or being with another man, how does it make him feel? He is so indignant and disgusted to even have to think about such a thing, but yet he's in the middle of his fourth courtship! That's where I would have appreciated an explanation. What is it that makes a woman stay in a marriage where she shares her husband? I understand the whole having other women around to help with the kids, but why share a husband? I also don't get what Cody means when he's quoted at the beginning of every show saying, "Love should be multiplied, not divided." Isn't he dividing his love up between four different women? So yes, while this makes entertaining television, some explanations would be nice. (and if they explained and I missed it, leave me a comment cause I'd love to know.)