In the year 2009, Macross: Do You Remember Love? depicts a humanity pushed to the brink of extinction following the arrival of the Zentradi, a giant alien race dedicated entirely to warfare. The survivors reside within the SDF-1 Macross, a reconstructed alien fortress that has been converted into a massive, self-sustaining mobile city traveling through the solar system. The interior of the ship features a meticulously recreated 1980s-style urban landscape, serving as a psychological anchor for the civilian population during their long journey through hostile space.

The film’s technological and societal dynamics revolve around "OverTechnology"—advanced alien systems scavenged and integrated into human machines, most notably the VF-1 Valkyrie variable fighters. A core theme is the concept of cultural contamination; the Zentradi and their female counterparts, the Meltlandi, have lost the ability to create art or experience emotion due to millennia of constant combat. Earth itself is rendered largely uninhabitable early in the conflict, serving as a desolate, scorched graveyard that forces humanity to look toward the stars for survival. This divergent timeline suggests a world where a sudden technological leap (from the 1999 crash of the original fortress) accelerated human spacefaring capabilities far beyond historical reality.

From a predictive standpoint, the film accurately envisioned the ubiquity of automated retail and the evolution of holographic displays in live entertainment. One specific scene features a digital magazine with moving photographs, which closely mirrors the functionality of modern tablets and GIFs. While the film’s mecha remains speculative, its portrayal of cybernetic integration—specifically the Zentradi leader being physically fused into his fortress's command center—parallels modern discussions regarding brain-computer interfaces. However, director Shoji Kawamori noted that the production missed the rise of smartphones, as the characters still rely on bulky communication headsets and fixed terminals.