Hello Forzaken,

I think you're putting too much detail into the animated part and losing sight of your ghost as a whole. It looks really incomplete- the animated part looks kind of lost with the rest standing still. I think you're also approaching the animation in the wrong way; you could spend a lifetime trying to track all the ripples. 2D animation can be very time consuming, so it's best to avoid really complicated textures like that (cartoons look cartoony for a reason).

Along with avoiding animated textures, focus way more attention on having an outline that moves (here you just have the bottom moving). Maybe have his tail end move in and out like he's inching along?

You might want to check out this page for an overview of some animation principles: http://minyos.its.rmit.edu.au/aim/a_notes/anim_principles.html ( Animation Notes #6 has some good stuff on key frames, too). Keep in mind not all of it is relevant for game animation, though.

Good luck!