On New Year’s Eve 2025, TOKYO MX is turning the clock back to 1984. As part of its year-end programming, the station will air The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love?—the theatrical film that marked Shoji Kawamori’s directorial debut—on December 31 from 15:40 to 17:55 (JST). The broadcast is timed to celebrate the very next day’s Japanese theatrical premiere of Meikyu no Shiori (迷宮のしおり / Labyrinth), Kawamori’s first completely original feature-length anime film, opening on January 1, 2026.
Macross Do You Remember Love Returns to TV on New Year’s Eve
The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love? is the 1984 theatrical film that reimagines the original Macross TV series as a condensed, high-density feature. Co-directed by Noboru Ishiguro and Shoji Kawamori, it rebuilds the Space War I storyline with all-new animation, redesigned characters and mecha, and a more intense, grounded tone.
For this year’s year-end programming, TOKYO MX is giving the movie a prime afternoon slot on December 31, 2025 from 15:40 to 17:55 (JST) on its MX1 channel. It is a rare chance to see the film as a one-shot TV event—complete with Lynn Minmay’s iconic theme song “Ai Oboete Imasu ka (Do You Remember Love?)”, a track that long ago escaped the anime niche and became a classic in its own right.
Kawamori’s Debut Film and the Legacy It Gave to Macross
For Shoji Kawamori, Do You Remember Love? was more than just a compilation movie—it was his first film as a director, co-helming the project after helping create the original Macross TV series. The movie pushed the franchise’s trademark mix of transforming Valkyrie fighters, large-scale space warfare between the Zentradi and Meltrandi, and a love triangle centered on pilot Hikaru Ichijo, bridge officer Misa Hayase, and idol singer Lynn Minmay into a tighter, more cinematic form.
The film’s bold reworking of the TV storyline, along with its use of music as an emotional weapon in the climax, helped lock in the “song + mecha + romance” formula that would define Macross for decades and influence Kawamori’s later projects as well.
Broadcast Schedule and Ways to Watch on TOKYO MX
The New Year’s Eve broadcast is part of TOKYO MX’s 2025–2026 special programming lineup. As of the announcement, the key details are:
Title: The Super Dimension Fortress Macross: Do You Remember Love?
Date: Wednesday, December 31, 2025
Time: 15:40–17:55 (JST)
Channel: TOKYO MX1
Program page: Special page on the TOKYO MX website
TOKYO MX is a terrestrial channel focused on the Tokyo area. Depending on your TV provider and region in Japan, you may be able to watch via cable, satellite relay, or compatible streaming apps that mirror MX’s broadcast. For viewers outside Japan, this particular airing will generally not be directly accessible, so your best bet is to look for official Blu-ray or 4K releases and any licensed streaming in your region instead of relying on unofficial uploads of the TV broadcast.
Labyrinth Meikyu no Shiori as Shoji Kawamori’s New Original Feature
The following day, January 1, 2026, sees the nationwide Japanese theatrical premiere of Meikyu no Shiori (迷宮のしおり / Labyrinth), described as Kawamori’s first fully original feature-length anime film. Produced at SANZIGEN and distributed by GAGA, the movie runs about 115 minutes and drops Kawamori’s trademarks into a thoroughly modern setting.
The story follows Shiori Maezawa, a shy high school girl in Yokohama who gets trapped inside a mysterious smartphone labyrinth after her phone breaks. In the real world, a flashier alter ego, “SHIORI@revolution”, emerges to take her place and starts reinventing Shiori’s life as a super-popular high school celebrity. Between Shiori in the labyrinth, the rabbit-like sticker character Komori, and the young genius entrepreneur Suguru Kagami, the plot spirals into a youth-centric escape drama that mixes technology, identity, and performance.
Both Shiori and her double are voiced by SUZUKA from the global dance-vocal group ATARASHII GAKKO!, marking her debut as a voice actor and tying into the film’s theme song “Sailor, Sail On”. The cast also includes Taizo Harada, Aoi Ito, Jun Saito, Sho Hayami, Maaya Sakamoto, Tomokazu Sugita, and Takuto Teranishi.
For trailers and the latest updates, check the official site: Visit the Labyrinth official website
From Valkyries to Smartphones Tracing Kawamori’s Vision Across Decades
Putting Do You Remember Love? and Labyrinth side by side highlights how consistent—and flexible—Kawamori’s style has been over more than forty years. In Macross, music and love literally reshape the battlefield, with Minmay’s song turning a cosmic war into a story about culture and emotion. In Labyrinth, everyday smartphone culture becomes a stage for identity, performance, and the gap between who we are and who we present online.
In both cases, the core ingredients are similar: a bold, visually distinct setting, a heroine whose voice and presence can change the world around her, and a blend of sci-fi ideas, music, and messy human feelings. For long-time fans, watching Macross’s 1984 space opera on TV and then jumping into a 2026 smartphone labyrinth youth film is like tracing Kawamori’s creative evolution in fast-forward.
Ring in the New Year with Macross and Labyrinth Back to Back
If you happen to be in Japan this year-end, TOKYO MX’s broadcast offers a ready-made plan: spend the afternoon of December 31 with Valkyries, Minmay’s song, and one of anime’s most influential space operas, then wake up on January 1 and head to the theater for a brand-new Kawamori story about smartphones, doubles, and breaking out of the maze.
Fans abroad may not be able to catch the TV airing itself, but this pairing is still a great reminder to revisit Macross: Do You Remember Love? through its Blu-ray or 4K releases, and to keep an eye out for international screenings or releases of Meikyu no Shiori / Labyrinth as 2026 gets underway. However you watch, this New Year’s is shaping up to be a perfect time to dive back into Kawamori’s worlds—both the nostalgic and the brand-new.
More details on the TOKYO MX special program
Official site for Meikyu no Shiori (Labyrinth)
Follow the Labyrinth official X account
©1984 BIGWEST
©『迷宮のしおり』製作委員会
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