Currently Reviewing: Sold Out on You

Currently Reviewing: Sold Out on You

Matthew Lee (Ahn Hyo-Seop) is young farmer nicknamed Quail. He speaks with a gruff tone, but he has a warm heart. He cultivates white-flowered nuri mushroom with great care. One day, Dam Ye-Jin (Chae Won-Bin) shows up during his tranquil routine. She is the top host for home shopping network Hit and she is personally obsessed with white-flowered nuri mushroom. She is here to renew their contract for the white-flowered nuri mushroom. No matter how many times he refuses, she persistently pursues him. Their relationship soon blossoms into romance. (Source: Asianwiki)

• Drama: Sold Out On You (English title) / Sold Out Again Today (literal title) / Hangul: 오늘도 매진했습니다
• Director: An Jong-Yeon / Writer: Jin Seung-Hee
• Network: SBS / Episodes reviewed: 4 / In total are: 12
• Release Date: April 22 - May 28, 2026 / Runtime: Wednesday & Thursday 

A very similar story with this topic is Brewing Love (2024)

Fan made Ai art: My Tumblr page & roccio2 on Tumblr.  And themoviedb.org. 

Cast and crew, entire list: MyDramaList

Our leading lady, DAM YE-JIN (Chae Won-Bin) is a host at the home shopping network, HIT, and sells out every product she promotes. Ye-jin is also a celebrity in her own right, with multiple commercials and brand deals to her name. But Ms. Sold Out Queen doesn’t have an off button, and all her waking moments are spent thinking of the next product to sell. When I clock out of work, I just want to chill and watch dramas. But Ye-jin walks into her apartment — which is practically a museum of products — after a long day’s work, only to resume working again.

Ye-jin’s workaholic nature ruins her romantic relationship. And she gets another heartbreak when her prime-time slot is given to her rival host, JI YOON-JI (Park Ah-in). Yoon-ji successfully poached bestselling cosmetics brand, Beauty Song, and it makes more sense to assign the coveted time slot to a sure moneymaker. HIT’s director, DONG HYUN-KI (Shin Dong-mi), informs an upset Ye-jin that the only way to retake the time slot is to land a deal with L’Etoile, a French cosmetics brand. But Hyun-ki might as well have said “no time slot for you, hahaha!” in Ye-jin’s face, because our sold out queen does NOT sell cosmetics. She even has a clause in her contract to that effect..

There’s clearly more to this backstory than we know, and Ye-jin still suffers from nightmares till date. Myeong-hwa also holds a massive grudge against Ye-jin, and she’d rather Ye-jin be fired from HIT if it were up to her. By the way, Myeong-hwa is the face of Beauty Song. 

Ye-jin’s work predicament worsens her insomnia, and she eventually hits the maximum dosage of sleeping pills. Her doctor advises against continuous overuse of the pills, and suggests that she identify and resolve the root cause of her insomnia — which is most likely trauma from the cream incident. Ye-jin’s friend and teammate, producer UHM SUNG-MI (Park Ye-young), encourages her not to stress over Hyun-ki’s mandate to bring in L’Etoile, and assures her that the team has her back. But while Ye-jin is touched by the vote of confidence, she cannot in good conscience watch her team lose their jobs. She reaches out to L’Etoile. But her plan is to sign on the brand and leave the launch broadcast to another host.

Coincidentally, L’Etoile’s executive director, ERIC SEO (Kim Bum) has just arrived in Korea to renew a raw material supply contract with Gojeuneok Bio. Eric is turned down, but he won’t take no for an answer — especially when he suspects that Gojequneok Bio’s CEO, KANG MU-WON (Yoon Byung-hee), might not be fully in charge of decision making in the company. Business smarts aside, Eric possesses a charming and playful vibe, and I grabbed my anti-second lead syndrome pills the second he showed up on screen! But I doubt the effectiveness of said pills when weighed against Kim Bum’s signature smile. It doesn’t help that Eric and Ye-jin have a past connection, and the man is totally whipped for her. Sigh.

(GIF images source: caliverse on Tumblr and caliverse on Tumblr) 

Flashback to a rainy day three years ago, it was attraction at first sight for Eric when Ye-jin ducked under his umbrella. She agreed to his next-day lunch invite at a pastry shop. But rather than collect her phone number to fix a time for lunch, he left it all up to fate. Smh. Eric ended up waiting the whole day for Ye-jin, but she didn’t show up. And that’s exactly why you don’t tempt fate. Eric had to leave for France without seeing his crush. But now that fate has made them cross paths again, he is determined to make things work out with Ye-jin this time. Poor guy has no idea he’s on his way to join dramaland’s second male leads’ support group.

The main message “please recognize me” written in bold font on Eric’s forehead throughout their meeting, Ye-jin doesn’t remember him. But he still agrees to sign the deal with HIT on the condition that Ye-jin works with L’Etoile to resolve their supplier issue. Ye-jin does her research on the WF-Mushroom — which is the raw material/key ingredient for L’Etoile’s La Fin essence — and she learns the mushroom is cultivated specially for Gojeuneok Bio. Ye-jin thinks L’Etoile might have a better chance of renewing their contract if they win over the owner of the mushroom farm, so she heads down to Deokpung village in search of the farm. 

(Gif images source: caliverse on Tumblr and heavenstars on Tumblr)

This is where we meet our leading man, MATTHEW LEE (Ahn Hyo-Seop). Matthew or Mechoori, as he’s fondly called by the villagers (mechoori means quail in Korean, and it sounds like Matthew Lee), is the mushroom farm owner — and the secret co-CEO of Gojeuneok Bio! Matthew is at the peak of his youth in a village with an elderly population, hence he’s the go-to guy for all handyman needs. Assistance with livestock births, chopping wood, making kimchi, beehive removal, climbing rooftops to adjust TV antennas, transport services with his tractor, you name it. Matthew is as gruff as can be, and he swears each assistance he renders is his last. But he ends up acquiescing to new requests as they come. The man is right where he wants to be and he needs no saving. 

(Gif images source: heavenstars on Tumblr) 

Ye-jin and Matthew have their meet-cute in the middleG of a one-way lane. And their back and forth over who has the right of way, is the first of many they’ll have this week. Ye-jin is forced to leave her car by the roadside when the rear wheel gets stuck in the soil, and Matthew unknowingly hits her side mirror when he squeezes his tractor past her car. Oops! A few squabbles later, Ye-jin spots the mushrooms at the back of his tractor and inquires about the farm owner. But Matthew is done with this extremely rude and full of herself lady in front of him, and he replies that the owner isn’t around. Ye-jin is forced to leave the farm when Matthew threatens to report her for obstruction of business. But that’s when she discovers her side mirror is broken! *cue her dramatic breakdown*.

Ye-jin can’t wait for the towing company because she has to hurry back to Seoul for a live broadcast. She tries to hitch a ride with Matthew to the bus terminal, but he ignores her. It’s only when she crashes facedown into the road while chasing his tractor that he stops to pick her. And even at that, it’s the village’s matriarch, YANG SANG-GEUM (Go Du-shim), that makes him pull over. Heh. Despite her less than stellar first impression of Matthew, Ye-jin is impressed when he scolds the bus driver for driving off before the ajumma passengers are properly seated. She thanks him. And then he leans in close enough to fluster her… before merely pointing out that she’s seated in a priority seat.

Matthew threatens to file a complaint to HIT that Ye-jin used the prize event to gain his private information, and she’s forced to sign an agreement stating she won’t visit his house again. But Ye-jin shows up at the mushroom farm because the agreement isn’t binding on a property that isn’t Matthew’s. “If you want to chase me out, then call the farm owner and tell him to come here right now,” she says. Smh. Matthew ignores Ye-jin — who is soon captivated by the sight of him gazing adoringly at his prized mushrooms. She soon snaps out of her daze and asks when he’s getting off work. “When I think I’ve done enough,” he replies. Ye-jin also thinks she has done enough, and she leaves. But not before calling Hyun-ki to confirm that she will do L’Etoile’s launch broadcast herself.

Speaking of L’Etoile, there’s some yet-to-be-spilled reason why Gojeuneok bio won’t renew their supply contract. As a result, Mu-won suggests trying something again, but Matthew isn’t interested in whatever this something is. Matthew returns home to find Sang-geum’s chicken on his roof, and he belatedly realizes Ye-jin was telling the truth. As he prepares for bed, Mu-won blows up his phone with persuasive calls and texts. But rather than change his mind about the something, Mathew changes his phone number.

Meanwhile, Ye-jin — who’s sleeping over at Sang-geum’s place — settles in for the night after popping a set of sleeping pills. Next thing you know, she sits up in a hallucinatory daze (a side effect of the pill overuse) and dials a number. It rings for a while, and then someone picks. “Mom, why weren’t you picking up?” She cries. But it’s a confused Matthew on the other end of the line. Looks like Ye-jin’s mom’s number was reassigned to Matthew. Meaning her mom hasn’t used that number in a while. Meaning her mom wherebounts are unknown.

I wasn’t expecting Ye-jin to be the PTSD flag bearer here. But I can almost bet Matthew also has a sob story tied to his non-use of his Korean name. Lool. A trauma sandwich? Let’s have it. Away from the trauma, I don’t like that Ye-jin feels like a different person in Deokpung. Seoul Ye-jin might be a little eccentric when it comes to work, but she’s more grounded and less invasive than Deokpung Ye-jin — who’s bratty, annoying, and nothing like the professional host we know. I get wanting to play up the irritation at first sight between the leads, but there are better ways to do that than make Ye-jin act so obnoxious around Matthew. The show needs to find a balance that works between both Ye-jins.

(GIF images source: heavenstars on Tumblr)

Ye-jin was raised alone by her dad, DAM SUK-KYUNG (Kim Young-jae), until she accidentally discovered that Myeong-hwa is her mom. That’s right, the one and the same Song Myeong-hwa of the facial cream incident. Ye-jin has always been a fan of Myeong-hwa, and they reconnected after she insisted on meeting her mom. But their relationship had to be kept secret due to Myeong-hwa’s celebrity status. Flash forward to a few years later, Myeong-hwa got into an accident and a worried Ye-jin slipped up and addressed her as “mom” in front of reporters. But Myeong-hwa denied Ye-jin and stopped picking her calls, and their relationship naturally crumbled from there.

We finally learn that the “something” Mu-won and Matthew talked about last week was the construction of a lab for Matthew. And despite Matthew’s objection, Mu-won is going ahead with it because Matthew is supposedly happier in a lab than on a farm. We also learn that L’Etoile wants a larger volume of raw materials than usual, but Gojeuneok bio isn’t willing to compromise quality for quantity, hence their refusal to renew the supply contract. Hmmm. I wonder if Matthew once had a quantity–quality incident that blew up in his face and sent him from the lab to the farm. Moving on, Eric briefs Ye-jin about his meeting with Gojeuneok bio’s co-CEO. But Matthew introduced himself with his Korean name, LEE HAE-SEOK, during the meeting, and that’s the name Eric mentions to Ye-jin. Hae-seok’s seeming rigidity — based on Eric’s recounting of the meeting — reminds Ye-jin of Mathew, but she doesn’t put two and two together. The math finally clicks when Ye-jin takes a complaint call while filming a promotional segment at HIT’s customer service department. It’s Matthew on the other end calling to report a fault in the product Sang-geum ordered last week, and Ye-jin sees his Korean name on the purchase history! Da-dun!

Ye-jin is suddenly the protagonist in a horror movie as she recalls how rude she was to Matthew in her search for the mushroom farmer. Lol. She heads to Deokpung village to fix the issue with Sang-geum’s product — and her relationship with Matthew, while at it. But he promptly kicks her out of his house when she lets him in on her newfound knowledge that he’s the mushroom farmer. Heh. Ye-jin ends up falling on her arm in one of her many attempts to win Matthew over, and she has to get a cast. But she removes it before a subsequent live broadcast because she can’t let her injury stand out more than the product she’s advertising. Ye-jin’s work ethic and devotion to her customers almost makes Matthew change his mind about working with her. But almost is not an absolute.

After the broadcast, Yoon-ji tells Ye-jin about Beauty Song’s plan to launch its own essence, and accuses her of trying to bring Myeong-hwa down by launching L’Etoile’s essence. This conversation sours Ye-jin’s mood, and she’s further pissed when she arrives home to meet her dad stocking her fridge with side dishes. Ye-jin doesn’t appreciate his gesture and she accuses him of always doing as he pleases. A flashback reveals that Myeong-hwa tried to contact Ye-jin to apologize for denying her at the hospital, but Dad stopped her from getting in touch. His excuse was that he didn’t want to see Ye-jin get hurt again, but it wasn’t his decision at all.

Ye-jin sleep-dials Matthew again, and he’s about to hang up when she mentions her name. He assumes she’s drunk and is about to hang up when he hears a crash in the background. Actually, Ye-jin broke a flower vase while sleepwalking. But Matthew assumes the worst, and his goodhearted self can’t help but rush over to check on her. For plot’s sake, Matthew is at Gojeuneok bio’s office in Seoul, so he manages to arrive just in time to save Ye-jin’s sleepwalking ass from getting hit by a car. I’m not clear on the logistics of how he knew her exact neighborhood, but we shan’t fuss about minor details. We get a brief flashback to a disheveled and barefooted Matthew sitting on a snowy street, his feet covered in wounds (of course he has his own sad backstory!). Then we return to a barefooted Ye-jin with similar bruises in the present. Trauma recognizes trauma, so Matthew buys Ye-jin slippers and trails after her to ensure she sleepwalks back home safe and sound.

Ye-jin is not completely fine even after waking up, and she has to take glucose tablets to get her bearings. Matthew wonders why she’s overworking herself, and she jokes that it’s for contract renewal purposes. But he tells her he won’t change his mind no matter what she does. Ms. Overworking returns to Seoul to work even more at a cafe, and Eric “coincidentally” shows up after his assistant mentions sighting her. Earlier on, Ye-jin confirmed she actually recognized Eric from three years ago, but she didn’t bring it up at their first meeting because she was sorry she couldn’t show up back then. But lest Eric have some hope of rekindling anything, Ye-jin tells him now that she doesn’t date people she does business with. Still, Eric is hopeful they can resume the conversation after the conclusion of their business. A B C D(elulu) E(ric).

Matthew discovers Ye-jin’s sleeping pills fell out of her bag while he was searching for her glucose tablets. It’s too late for her to drive down to Deokpung, so they agree to meet halfway at a rest stop. Ye-jin loses her car keys on her way to the bathroom, and she’s forced to sit outside and wait for Matthew — who’s running late due to an emergency on the farm. Time passes and the shops around begin to close. As the lights go off, Ye-jin’s feeling of abandonment begins to creep in. Then a headlamp cuts through the darkness and Matthew emerges. Cue: a teary and relieved Ye-jin rushing to hug him under the rain.

Afterwards, Matthew returns Ye-jin’s sleeping meds — or more accurately, a single dose of the pills. Ye-jin demands for the rest of her meds, and Matthew replies that he’ll give her a dose each day. “Dam Ye-jin, let’s meet everyday,” he says. We flashback to when Matthew escorted Ye-jin home during her sleepwalking episode. She called her mom (Matthew’s number) to report the “strange and stubborn guy” she recently met (Matthew). But she also says she feels like everything’s going to be okay when she’s with him. Back to the present, Matthew recalls Sang-geum advising him not to close his heart. According to her, “you can’t stop things that force their way in no matter how hard you try.” It’s clear Ye-jin has forced her way into Matthew’s life, and it’s up to him to accept it. Or deny it. We’ve got four more weeks to explore either option, anyway.

I thought the facial cream incident was Ye-jin’s only trauma, but she has mommy issues as well? Whoa! This adds a whole new layer to her conflict with Myeong-hwa, and makes the situation even sadder. On a lighter note, Deokpung Ye-jin has shed off her annoying skin and she’s beginning to tonally resemble Seoul Ye-jin. But while the villagers have accepted Ye-jin into their midst, convenience store owner, NA JIN-YI (Kim Seo-ahn) has her reservations. This may or may not have anything to do with Ye-jin’s promotion of the facial cream — which may or may not be the reason behind Jin-yi’s kid sister, NA SOM-YI’s (Ahn Se-bin) skin reaction. Jin-yi also has a crush on Matthew, so we just might have another love triangle on our hands.

This time it's a simple recap without many graphic images but I chose them to feel exactly right, like the expression "Ah… that hits the spot!". Hope you won't mind this too much and here is a fan made playlist with soundtracks up until now from Spotify to listen them when you need. Goodbye! Until next time!

Sources: Asianwiki, DramaBeans, here, Mydramalist, Spotify, themoviedb.org and Tumblr links are written in the article as you read it.