"From" Season 4 has reached its halfway point with Episode 5, titled "What a Long Strange Trip It's Been," an episode that delves deep into the mysteries of the town while revealing important clues. Viewers are now aware that the seemingly innocent Sophia is in fact the Man in the Yellow Suit, manipulating the townspeople. Concurrently, Julie is exploring the capabilities of her "storywalking" abilities. This pivotal episode sees Jade (David Alpay) taking mushrooms in a desperate attempt to gain visions that might offer an escape or, at the very least, more answers, all while under the watchful eye of Boyd (Harold Perrineau).

David Alpay, who portrays Jade, shared his initial reaction to learning about the highly anticipated "mushrooms episode." He expressed both excitement and nervousness, emphasizing his desire for the audience to experience Jade's journey as grounded and real, avoiding any "cartoonish side quest" feel. Alpay credits the writers and director Jack Bender for recognizing the importance of making Jade's discoveries feel sincere, ensuring the episode's reveals land with genuine impact.

To achieve the distorted reality of Jade's trippy experience, the production employed ingenious old-school practical effects rather than relying on CGI. Alpay detailed various techniques, including using large sheets of plexiglass melted with heat torches and waved in front of the camera to create shimmery, refracted visual effects for Jade's point-of-view shots of the forest. Stunt theater tricks were also utilized, such as Harold Perrineau shifting position while another actor replaced him, creating seamless and disorienting character transformations. This hands-on approach allowed the team to see immediate results on set, ensuring the desired effect was achieved without post-production outsourcing.

A significant emotional turning point for Jade in Episode 5 is his violin monologue, where he watches his younger self playing for his grandmother until her passing. Alpay found this writing profoundly personal and truthful, feeling an immense responsibility to convey its sincerity to the audience. He explained that by this point in the series, Jade's "mask is probably fully off," leaving him as a raw, exposed, and reactive individual whose every nerve is sensitive. This painful memory, dredged up during his altered state, signifies a character ready to confront his past, hinting at further evolution for Jade in future seasons.

The episode climaxes with a chilling sequence where Jade and Boyd discover a door leading to a tunnel beneath Colony House and a room where children were sacrificed. Jade is forcibly enclosed in a tomb, only to awaken back at the sheriff's station with Boyd, who insists they never left. Alpay, who is not claustrophobic, described filming this intense scene on an elevated stage to accommodate cameras and crew underneath, utilizing blue screen technology to create the cave environment. He also noted the mental challenge of coherently performing scenes shot out of sequence, jumping between different emotional states. Some moments from the script involving this sequence were ultimately cut from the final edit, which piqued Alpay's curiosity about the writers' motivations.

Regarding Jade's mysterious connection to the town and potential past lives, Alpay admits he has given up theorizing. Early attempts to gain insights from the writers proved futile, leading him to simply embrace the story one episode at a time. This approach, he believes, aids his portrayal of Jade as a character who is equally clueless yet relentlessly trying to piece together the unfolding enigma. "From" Season 4 continues to premiere new episodes on Sundays via MGM+.