This piece has the power to drag people from obscurity...
I am just going to comment on the staggering improvement from the original piece to the most recent incarnation. The colour choice improved greatly and the general technique in many areas has been enhanced, particularly the fin and the face. The pastel shift and loss of black colour really made this piece much softer on the eyes. The original is a bit more cell shaded, with what appears to be more harsh AntiAliasing, and has a much more comic appeal to it. I'll support the heavier AA on this piece that it lends itself to the soft colour choices and adds another layer of gentleness to the entire composition (without feeling pillow shaded or overly blurry). I prefer your lip and face enhancements ptoings, they are much more feminine for this particular piece, but he was right that she seemed barren withotu them. I agree with Helm's suggestion on limiting cloud coverage, but the addition of clouds is an improvement to the horizon in my opinion.
I can't decide about the hair... I can't decide if I like it in its current incarnation, or if it looks like a giant bonnet... I don't have time to make edits... but maybe you could play with it and see what other ideas pop up (who knows, maybe the current look is the best). A decent piece that, after the edits, really stands out as a remarkable piece of art. This thread is the model of how art critiques should be done. Excellent work Mirre, and everyone who offered advice.