About this year’s contest submissions

Three hundred and sixty-five days a year, The Washington Post's reporters and editors deliver the news of the day to the public; once a year we ask you to return the favor. When you do, it is yellow. And sugary. Though it appears in the spring, the annual Peeps Diorama Contest serves as a sort of Year in Review — albeit one rendered in sugar, corn syrup, gelatin and Yellow #5. The year’s headlines were rife with Peepable moments: the Oscars selfie, Olympics, the polar vortex and “Wrecking Ball.”

We winnowed the field to five finalists, with newsroom staffers voting for their top choice. It's difficult to quantify what makes one diorama stand out in a field of 700-plus entries. Resonance. Execution. But this is a competition where God — and victory — is in the details. Each of the finalists reflects that, whether it's paying homage to one of the defining moments of the 20th century or proving that, in the end, you just can't go wrong with a poop joke.

Want to see the Peeps in person? Stop by The Post, 1150 15th St. NW, to see the dioramas in our front windows.