The actress's casting was announced in June 2004, and she stated that she was excited to take on the role of Lana, a schoolgirl and the serial's first lesbian character.

The storyline between Lana and Sky was billed as a relationship story between two close female friends, "made compelling by the complexity of the feelings involved."

The episode featuring the kiss was broadcast in the serial's regular G-rated timeslot and gave Neighbours a small increase in ratings.

Writers for AfterEllen and the Sydney Star Observer branded the storyline "a real television advance" and praised Lana and her journey.

The show's executive producer, Ric Pellizzeri, believed the storyline reflected reality and some viewers said that it had had a "profound effect" on them.

In June 2004, Pete Timbs of TV Week reported Wicked Science actress Bridget Neval had joined the cast of Neighbours as Lana Crawford.

[1] Timbs revealed that Lana was a schoolgirl set to "liven things up among the Ramsay Street teenagers as she comes to terms with her sexuality.

"[1] Neval told Timbs' colleague Helen Vnuk that she was initially taken aback when she learned of the character she might be asked to play.

[5] "The first gay character on the long-running Australian soap, teenage newcomer Lana discovered a soulmate in straight series regular Sky.

Their friendship survived Lana's early crush, Sky's sexual confusion, and homophobic pressures from outsiders, and they emerged as platonic BFFs who took each other to the prom.

[2][7] Neval revealed that while Lana would fuel a storyline for established character Sky Mangel (Stephanie McIntosh), she would also go through her own journey.

[2] A representative from Grundy Television explained that the storyline would be "a relationship story of a close female friendship, made compelling by the complexity of the feelings involved.

[10] Describing the character, Natasha Norton from AfterEllen stated "She comes across at first as a touch flighty, as if she can't quite make up her mind as to who she wants to be, but it soon becomes abundantly clear that Lana's carefully constructed façade has a purpose.

[14] The executive producer of Neighbours, Ric Pellizzeri, said the storyline reflected reality and continued the show's move toward more contemporary issues.

[10][15] Script producer Luke Devenish told a reporter for the Sydney Star Observer, "There is that great tradition that the lesbian is always dead in the final scene, and we were very aware of that as we were writing her out.

[16] In a post to her Instagram account, Neval explained that she had retired from acting, but she could not refuse a request from series producer Jason Herbison to return, after learning that Lana would be reunited with Sky.

Sky and Lana begin drawing a cartoon strip together called Freak Girl and The Enigma and Buffy Only (Laura Gordon), the editor of a gay magazine, becomes interested in publishing it.

Shortly after the episode featuring the kiss was aired, the characters were attacked by talkback callers and conservative groups who thought that they had been "glamorising a high-risk culture" and "making homosexuality look cool".

[13] Chief executive of the Christian group Salt Shakers, Peter Stokes, told The Age's Kenneth Nguyen, "It just saddens me that we give our young people the message that these relationships are OK."[13] However, Ray Misson, the head of Melbourne University's arts education department, described the serial's depiction of a lesbian as "a real advance.

"[13] Neval believed that gay teenagers, who were already feeling insecure about how their sexuality would be accepted, would be devastated by the negative reaction surrounding the storyline.

[18] A writer from GayNZ.com noted that the episode featuring the kiss was broadcast unedited and provided Neighbours with a modest ratings increase.

[8] The reporter also praised Sky's reaction for being "more let's talk about it than get away from me, you lezzo freak", while adding that it seemed Neighbours had wanted Lana to be a "sympathetic gay character", which must have upset the Christian groups.