So Macross Frontier completely blows the rest of the series out of the water.
The original still gets massive points for classic story, but Frontier's production values are through the roof. The battle sequences are just spectacular, by far the best in the franchise (excepting maybe Macross Zero's dogfights, which are just as good). The music, for the most part, is very good too. I don't much like Sheryl's voice or her stage routines (could she be any sluttier?) but her songs themselves aren't that bad. Ranka's singing voice is superior by far. Also, HOLY **** THEY BROUGHT BACK "DO YOU REMEMBER LOVE?"!
Now, Sheryl the character I don't have as big a problem with. She was well-developed and actually kind of likeable, which is rare for her character type. In fact, most of the characters were quite well-done. Even Alto's supreme indecisiveness during the Macross-required love triangle I can live with, since being indecisive is kind of a huge part of his character overall.
If I had complaints, it has to do with some of the writing decisions. High school episodes? A Zentraedi woman that turns into a loli when micronized for no reason? Seriously, writing team? It's tolerable because neither receives very much focus really, and even when it does the writing is still at least decent, but I would have preferred those elements have been dropped entirely.
Well, I do believe that's it for Macross. I didn't really dislike any part of it, though Macross 7 was definitely the weakest entry. The original, Zero, and Frontier are the highlights.