The sword and armour really make this picture for me, and I like the use of red.  Also, there is a great amount of charm in the expression, making him seem very endearing.

I actually learned color from pixelling. I never did anything in color until I tried this stuff.

Not at all! Your color sense is top-notch and stands out. That you can also pixel only makes your stuff that much better. Mees a fan :)

Is that a bad thing? Like, am I stuck in some sort of rut? :p

No need to read. The icon says Kaiseto all over it.

This is awesome, I really like how you make those sprites. :)

I think it's very cute :)