In between thier usual fare of investigative news and a bevy of editorial pieces, The Washington Post was busy running their first-ever Peeps Diorama Contest.

Sure, we've indulged in Peeps dueling, in which peeps armed with toothpicks are placed in the microwave to see which candy strikes the first blow as they melt, but WaPo's contest surprised us. D.C.'s most esteemed news source asked folks to create scenes with Peeps, the essential Easter marshmallow treat, as the dramatis personae. What resulted went beyond the paper's wildest dreams. Over 300 people submitted dioramas depicting the squishy chicks and bunnies in outrageous scenes of intrigue and delight. The winner of the contest, Charles Johnston, posed Peeps in an homage to Marilyn Monroe in "Gentlemen Prefer Blondes", the same scene Madonna recreated in "Material Girl". Among the 22 photos offered online, entitled "Peeps Show", our favorites include a version of NBC's "To Catch a Predator" and Peeps at a liposuction clinic.

Though prime Peeps season may have passed, there's still plenty of time to snatch up the sugar bombs at discount prices. So if you didn't get a chance to enter WaPo's contest, your submissions to DCist's Flickr pool are never out of date.

Photo by Flickr user dcmahon77 used under Creative Commons license.