Lego has started a small contest using their Ideas platform that takes the daunting task of getting 10000 votes in 2 years down to just being in the top 25 for votes in 10 days. The theme for this first contest is Moments in Space and voting is from Feb 9 to 19, 2018.

At the time of this post, there is only 1 day left to submit and 804 submissions. These submissions are limited to a relatively generic Space theme. No NASA, no specific real world items, no custom colors or parts, and size is limited. This means there are a lot of similar projects and they can be grouped into just a few categories.

So which entries look like they might have the best chance at getting into the top 25? With more than 800 entries already, competition is likely pretty stiff. Each submitter is likely to do some campaigning which could tip the scales. But having looked at every entry so far, these look to have the highest chances. (Images are linked to their project pages).

The Top Contenders (Grouped by my general categories).

Dynamic Models:- These contenders each have moving functions that go beyond just posing. In this category, my top picks include the colorful Coin Operated Rocket Ride, that will rock and rise as a crank is turned. And the dynamic model of the earth revolving around the sun that will cause the Earth to pivot as it orbits the sun. I personally like Lego models that do something, so I’m hoping for these two to make it through to the next round.

Space Ships:- You’ll see a common theme with red and/or light blue accents in all of these. Retro is big in this competition. These vary in size and some have hidden functions and compartments. The cartoonish look to most of them is a great use for Legos.

Figures and Mechs: There were a large assortment of figures and mechs entered. These contenders are all made with virtual bricks so they have a lot of polish but some parts are shown in colors not yet released in production Lego sets. That may hurt there chances in the Lego review, but will not hold them back in the popular vote. The spaceman has been resubmitted with only known color parts and is receiving universal praise. I think the Retro Brickheads will have the most appeal of the Brickhead submitted ideas since M-Tron and Blacktron are beloved vintage Lego themes. The bee seems a bit shoehorned into this competition but the designer did it adeptly.

Scenes and Settings: The Scenes submissions ranged all over the place. Many took place on alien planets but these 4 hold the most promise to me. The first is two scenes back to back with a boy pretending on Earth and later in space. The asteroid mine opens up and in general has some nice scenery. The Sun surfer is toasty and slick looking, but since it was submitted as a 3D rendering, I do have to wonder if it will look half that good in real Legos. The First boy on the moon set has a delightful lunar lander shaped fort which makes the pretend aspect pretty visceral.

The other general categories of submissions had plenty of good ideas, but I didn’t gravitate to them so I’m not confident they will move forward in the competition. Those categories are:

Space Stations and Bases

Logos (The Lego space logo has been popular)

Rovers

Observatories

Micro Builds

Did I miss one your favorites? I’ve only selected 14 projects here, and 25 are said to go to Lego review so plenty of other projects have a real chance here. Feel free to comment with the link and your shout out to the projects you think are contenders.

Disclosure of My biases:

I’ve entered into this contest and foolishly think I have a chance…but I’m still rooting for my competition to make it into the top 25. I am against virtual bricks. I don’t trust that the designer made the model structurally sound if they don’t show a prototype in real bricks. I also think it is unfair that they can make their model look better with 3D renderings than it would look in real life. For example, its common practice to use virtual glass rather than virtual plastic when rendering models, and of course they can use advance lighting options. Finally, 3D brick submissions often include parts in colors that have not ever been released by Lego, or are very rare. I’m not fond of microbuilds because I don’t think they have any play value.