I'm quite new to pixel art, so don't take my critique too seriously, it's probably mostly inexperience talking
![Tongue :P](https://pixelation.org/Smileys/snake/tongue.gif)
First off, the redone, brighter picture makes everything pop in a very appealing way. I think the colors go well together, and the image is very readable at the native resolution. In the original image, at the native size I can barely tell you shaded the hat at all, as there isn't enough contrast in the colors you chose and they all blend together on that small of a scale. In the newer image the colors stand out from each other quite a bit more, and the shading itself looks a bit more appropriate to the light placement I think you're going for. (Above and in front? That's what it looks like to me, but again I'm quite new.)
The same comment extends to the rest of the image, the higher contrast makes everything much easier to read. I will say, as Tycho Magnetic Anomaly mentioned, the shoulder pads look a bit off to me as well. I don't think it's so much the color as the shading: I can't quite tell what you're going for because it doesn't seem to have the same light source as what I'm reading from the rest of the image: Are they supposed to be a sort of pauldron, or is it more like forward-facing oval meant to be the connections on a cape? Based on which you want I think the highlighting should be tweaked a bit, although I'm not quite sure how.
(Sorry, this is the only picture I could find with something similar:
https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/48/f4/8c/48f48cc05152858733057b80e6d3e37d.jpg Imagine the circles at the end of the chain are way bigger and more elliptical. Sorry if that doesn't make sense)