Mitty vs Mitty vs Mitty

I was pretty sure that the Ben Stiller version would need to be different psychologically. 

I mean, from the commercials it looked like it would be much more epic anyway, but also, all those years later one would hope for a difference. There was.

Let's review:

In the 1939 story, a man running errands while his wife is getting her hair done keeps lapsing into fantasies of heroism. When people wonder if he is all right or indicate that he is in their way, he feels irritated. Then the next fantasy is different, but none of them have anything really happening. They are just disconnected images of him being heroic.

In the 1947 movie, Walter works as a proofreader of pulp magazines, giving him plenty of fuel for his daydreams. A woman who is rightly worried about being followed kisses him and gets him into a cab, as protection. That leads to danger and complication, but not only does he get the girl, he gets a promotion. His fantasies are more detailed, but that does help open the door for musical numbers, which would not have been a factor for the short story.

2013 Walter works at Life magazine, handling the old school negatives submitted as the world, and the magazine, move to digital. In the final submission from one famous photographer, the negative that he recommends for the final cover is missing. In his attempt to locate it, Walter chases the photographer to Greenland, Iceland, and Afghanistan, then Los Angeles before returning to New York. What he wanted and needed was at home all along. I barely remember his fantasies, except that there was kind of a musical number with Kristen Wiig singing "Major Tom" while strumming a guitar.

1939 Walter is married, and seems to find his wife only a nuisance.

1947 Walter is engaged, but it doesn't really seem to be a love match; just something he got pulled into. By the end he has married the mystery woman, and seems much happier.

2013 Walter has someone he likes. She returns his interest fairly easily once given a chance. Instead of taking the direct approach, he tries going through eHarmony. I assume that was a sponsored inclusion, but it allows him to see how little he has going on in his life, and also how much has changed over the course of his adventures.

1939 Walter seems to have no interest in the people around him. They interrupt the fantasies, which are all that interest him.

1947 Walter is more connected, with a boss, fiancee, future mother-in-law, and a romantic rival, all of whom annoy him and make him want to retreat into the fantasy more. Telling them off is an important part of his hero's arc.

2013 Walter has a terrible new boss, but he has coworkers with whom he relates well, one he really wants to spend more time with, and a mother and sister that he does not fully appreciate, apparently concentrating more on the responsibility than the rewards, though he is missing something really key there. (There are some important details that I think we will get to later.)

The dissatisfaction with life is a common thread, as was the daydreaming as an escape from it. Otherwise there is not a lot in common. 

In all cases, Thurber's original vision is the least appealing. The movie incarnations are at least interested in their jobs. That can be a source of some satisfaction.

For more satisfaction, would there be some more optimal path than daydreaming? 

And might any of this relate to podbros?