looks okay show the gif u sissy

I can understand your reasoning as far as your artistic vision goes.  At least you have one.  I'm of  the mind that I may not know art, but I know what I like.   I'll respectfully remain at the opinion that what little shows in the preview is better looking than the detail submission.  Remember, in space no one can see you Anti-Aliasing.  

Black background was way too dark and the ship's shadowed regions blended into it. Was hard to tell where the ship ended and space began, especially in the back.

Very nice work!  Couple things to keep in mind for your submissions. You can get pieces pushed through to the gallery a lot faster if you don't pre-zoom.  PixelJoint has a zoom feature so you can just mention the best zoom to view by in the comments.  The other thing is to use transparency for Sprite submissions.  It goes a long way in not detracting from the art.  I wondered why you had such a beautiful background in your preview, but opted for a generic flat colored background in the final piece.  Transparency would look better than the existing one.  I'd definitely look into bringing that background to the final art if possible.