In the 1924 short story "The Most Dangerous Game" a Russian big game hunter named Zaroff hunts humans for sport. This plot has been used in several movies and at least 20 TV shows ranging from 'Bonanza' to 'The Simpsons'.
Xena is yet again mistaken for an Amazon in this episode.
The scene at 37 minutes may have been inspired by the game of Jenga.
The trebuchet that Morloch uses to send a net into the air to capture Varia won't be created until AD 1400.