As far as going into projects and not completing them - maybe the project itself was unrealistic/too ambitious. There's a number of factors that could have probably accounted for your multitude of incomplete works such as the scope (how big your project was considering every detail that'd need to be worked), the skill levels and capabilities of members involved, patience and perseverance (as you mentioned wanting to improve) and also just basically how long you've wanted to work on the project/how long of a timespan you set to complete the project (which ties again back into the scope).
Regarding the walking animation ~
There's a number of tutorials and videos that can help with that. Personally when I animate, I (usually) act out the animation. I try to feel out what my body is doing and where the main points of animation actually matter (visually) in my motions. I also work on applying dramatized frames (which are created through principles of animation) to make the piece more appealing.
As for the pug ~
It's extremely charming. I like the pug a lot lol. I would take off the red line running down from his collar. I'm not sure if that's supposed to be the leash, but it looks like he was cut and that's blood. The smaller the sprites, the less you want to add. At that size, it's moreso about using a single pixel to really demonstrate the
idea of the detail rather than the
detail itself (ex: the 3 pixel tongue you have rather than anything bigger than that really). It would've been best to leave the collar at that, but you're already applying that idealogy though (as shown in your previous works in the posts) - which is great!
With your characters in your newly experimented styles - I like the first. It definitely gives a more macho look with the emphasis you created on his pecs/chest, smaller head and such. The proportions better convey the 'strong' look you're striving for compared to the latter. Granted, the latter isn't bad either. You're still trying to find your style and there's always much to learn and gain in doing so.
Note: I use hyphens a lot. I know it's not grammatically correct but it's to add a sorta brief pause for emphasis. I try to be personable and creative when I write posts. I'm new to forum environments
Anywho ~ super great that you're trying to improve! It's extremely admirable that you're able to realize and come to terms with the faults in your past and use opening up to the forums as a remedy to better your work ethic. I do bid you luck and wellness on your journey of refinement