Hey, 3d (and digital artist, though it's not my job description) artist here. He's trying to be constructive, but it didn't come off right and assuming you're an amateur made it sound condescending and insulting, which I'm positive he didn't mean for it to. I've also been a digital artist for over 20 years, and there's always room for improvement. Taking criticism is one of the best things you can do to improve your art, and being honest with yourself is the easiest way to do that. Don't get too attached to your art - it's easiest to see flaws when you aren't out to defend it.

That said, I don't find the coloring boring at all. Looks like you pulled from the Orr artwork for the sake of accuracy and the coloring looks great in that regard. I find your characters to be a bit flat, though (I checked out your blog as well - thank you for not being one of those artists who stagnates trying to draw anime their entire lives). Try overlapping your values and obscuring your line art so that the different values create depth, rather than relying on your line art to make it into your final iteration. If you're set on digital art, I highly recommend checking out Feng Zu and learning to photo bash to add texture to your environments. Photo bashing, and using different brushes is going to push your artwork into the realm where it truly starts looking professional.

I think it's fantastic that you're doing this weekly for the sake of productivity and can't wait to see how these look a year or two from now.