Thank you, Zoƫ! Great thread title!
I dug up some of the more interesting (to me) mantis photos that came to mind.
This is from last September and continues to be a curious scene to me. It was as if she was welcoming the flies... She has a stink bug in her clutches. I probably didn't stay long enough to see if she ate them.
Looking innocent
I'm sure I'll find more...