I was really into the originals plus the companion movie DYRL?
With sequels, they really continue the previous one with references or they are their own stories---whether well written (and executed) or otherwise. That's regardless of whether some characters from the original come onboard or not.
I loved Star Trek The Next Generation, even if it began slow. Obvious references to TOS, but became its own show and story.
Sure, Macross isn't Star Trek, but the latter had some very good continuations.
Does Mac II continue the story well? (I see it's eighty years after the original. Kind of like STTNG was for the franchise.)