Top 10 Shocking Moments on Wife Swap

Since the 1970s, video games have captured the attention of millions of Americans. The Milorey family featured on “Wife Swap'' are no different. While all of the family members have their issues with gaming or spending time on the internet, it’s father and husband, Andrew, who takes the cake. Like most vices, Andrew’s fixation has come at the cost of those around him. His habit has resulted in a one-sided partnership with his wife and a lack of parental presence for his twelve-year-old son. In a shocking and eye-opening therapy session, Andrew learns how his actions have made his son feel unheard and unseen. The heart wrenching scene makes for a difficult moment to watch as the emotional boy clearly and desperately wants his father’s love and attention.

In the Holland household, little King Curtis rules the roost. As king, he is used to having his every wish fulfilled by his parents, even if that means having no chores or living exclusively off of chicken nuggets. Much to Curtis’ dismay, “Wife Swap” brought Joy Brown into his life. And with Joy brought changes focused on discipline and healthy dieting, meaning no more chicken nuggets - well, actually no more chicken fingers, but you catch our drift . Like anyone else in their right mind, this change was too much for Curtis to handle, leading to one of the most memorable moments in the show’s history. There is something bewildering yet entertaining about Curtis’ expression of anger, his well-spoken insults, and his attachment to chicken as he packs his tiny suitcase to walk out on Joy.

While some may be surprised at the Heiss’ lavish lifestyle and excessive consumption in season two of “Wife Swap,” the Kestrels’ way of life is much more shocking. Like most, Susan Heiss has a difficult time understanding the Kestrels’ lifestyle choices. The family purposefully lives below the poverty line, surviving on an income of only $6000 a year and dumpster diving for food in an effort to conserve resources. While their intentions are good, some might say that their choices come at the cost of their quality of life or dignity. It’s safe to say, Susan Heiss would agree with that sentiment. In fact, the experience was so distressing that Susan had a near breakdown when she was asked to beg for scraps to eat.

It’s no wonder that Halani Lobdell felt like she was transported back in the 1940s when she entered the Moon household. Self-proclaimed man of the house, Jack Moon, believes that a woman’s purpose is to serve men and look pretty doing it. While his beliefs alone are belittling to an entire gender, his enforcement of those beliefs are even more insulting. When the two first meet on the show, Jack’s first line of questioning is distasteful, immediately evaluating Halani’s usefulness to him. We see the same chauvinistic and demeaning attitude towards Halani for the rest of the episode, both in Jack’s comments and behavior. Tired and frustrated with Jack’s archaic way of thinking, Halani came home grateful to be living in the 21st century.

You wouldn’t think that parents would willingly admit to harming their own children on national television, but the Reimers aren’t like other parents. This family practically runs their home like a military regime, maintaining a high standard for their young children that comes with strict discipline. In the Reimers’ introduction, the parents cooly and unabashedly explain that each of their children has a leather whacker that is used to spank them when they get out of line. While it is completely normal to discipline children, the Reimers take it to the extreme and come across as very cold. Thankfully, swapped wife, Cindy Bittner, spoke her mind about the whackers and cut the leather belts up much to the joy of the children.

When the patriotic, gun-toting American, Glen Smoak, appeared on “Wife Swap,” he seemingly did so with the intention of forming a closer and more loving relationship with his partner. But things seemed to take a turn when Amy Beaver arrived at his home. Despite her advocacy for animal rights and pacifistic nature, Glen makes a point to comment on her beauty, kiss her several times throughout the episode, and show her off like a trophy. It’s not exactly the type of behavior you would expect a married man to exhibit. If all of that wasn’t enough, Glen explicitly admits to the cameras that he would like Amy as his partner! Though we are pretty sure those feelings aren’t mutual.

Dayna and Joe Martin’s parenting style and view on education are about as unconventional as you can get. The two believe in “Radical unschooling,” a method of education where children use the world as a tool and learn through life experiences rather than using books or homework. Though a nice idea in theory, the Martins’ method of schooling, or lack of, is concerning to say the least. Their eleven-year-old daughter is only just beginning to teach herself how to read, but it still unable to pick up a book to read from. This makes it difficult to understand the actual benefits or use of unschooling when a child is illiterate at such an age. Though hyperbolic, Cindy Avery-Lamb voiced what most were thinking during the episode.

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. To the Guastaferro family, beauty is all that matters. From eleven-months-old, the Guastaferros have raised their daughter, Alicia, to participate in beauty pageants. While the practice itself is controversial, the behavior displayed by Alicia’s parents is even more troubling. While the family spoils Alicia with Christmas presents year-round and completes schoolwork for the teenager, the values instilled in their impressionable daughter may be disturbing to some. Both parents place utmost importance on physical appearance, especially when it comes to Alicia. Mr. Guastaferro in particular makes several unsavory comments in relation to his daughter’s looks and even helps to keep up her appearances. To say his involvement in Alicia’s physical looks is uncomfortable to watch would be an understatement.

Kim Hess-Webb is a quintessential urban mother whose prime focus remains on education and cleanliness. Little did she know she was in for one of the most shocking experiences of her life when she lived with the Haigwoods. This family of farmers unschools their children, brushes their teeth with butter, and consumes an all raw food diet. That means vegetables, eggs and, yes, even raw meat. The entire family aggressively defends their choices as healthy, boasting miraculous benefits from their diet such as hair regrowth, but we’ll let you decide if that worked for Mr. Haigwood or not. Nevertheless, viewers and Kim can’t help but cringe every time the Haigwoods bite into a piece of uncooked meat. In addition to wondering how they have survived this long.

Let’s face it: we’ve all been stuck at jobs we weren’t the biggest fan of. Samantha Myers would have to agree. However, Sam enjoys her role as a high-level executive and, instead, likens her job as a mother of four to negative work. While there’s no denying motherhood is not for everyone, Sam’s callous attitude towards her children throughout the episode is uncomfortable to watch. Especially when the Myers children are so well aware of her views. Sam’s daughter even reveals that she has questioned her mother on why she has had so many children. The response was awkward and distasteful at best. In an episode full of several emotional high points, the most shocking moment was the emotional vacancy between Sam and her children.