History Literature / PacificVortex

* ExcitedShowTitle

* AmbiguousSituation: Pitt acusses Delphi of brainwashing his men into obedience, and later the baddie stares deeply at Pitt's eyes with his own yellow eyes in what Pitt calls hypnosis. It's unknown whether Delphi was really attempting to hypnotize Pitt or he was just very angry and trying to psych him out.

* HollywoodTactics: Both the bad and good guys fall on this. Kanoli's general strategy is composed of just creating artificial mist and sending an [[ZergRush enormously huge but poorly equipped board party]] in the hopes of subduing their crews by surprise and sheer numbers. At the end of the day, they only succeed at making the ''Martha Ann'' retreat because her crew, being barely better equipped and obviously much less numerous, cannot repel a boarding party of that size.

* ArtisticLicenseBiology: Delphi's men carry their Roblemann artificial gills grafted to the sides of their ribcages. In real life, if it was needed to surgically attach such gadget to a human respiratory system, it would be smarter to place it in the user's neck, not in his torso. Not only due to the risks of pumping air directly to the lungs (we have tracheea and larynx for something), but also because a graft placed between the ribs would probably interfere with the chest muscle movement needed to breath.

* CanonDiscontinuity: The events in the book are implied to have happened in BroadStrokes after Pitt's children reveal themelves in ''Valhalla Rising'', because Pitt and Summer never have sex in their limited screentime together in the book. If not, the storyline would gain [[ChildByRape completely different overtones]], as in every scene in which he could had gotten Summer pregnant, [[DudeShesLikeInAComa one of the two was unconscious all the time]]. One possibility out of two: [[spoiler: when Dirk carried Summer back to his hotel room and joked about raping her while she was out cold, he wasn't joking; or, alternately, when Dirk fell unconscious in Summer's room in the submerged island, she quickly raped him before alerting anyone.]] In hindsight, considering that Pitt's love interest in ''Dragon'' has sex with him explicitly while he is sleeping, those speculations might be exactly what Cussler meant about Pitt and Summer.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Despite its posterior release, this was the first Dirk Pitt story written by Cussler, and thus features a number of unusual elements compared to the posterior continuity. For instance, Pitt uses an anachronistic Mauser C-96 of all things instead of his classic Colt 45, while Giordino loses a pinkie that is never mentioned again in (except by the next book in the series, ''The Mediterranean Caper''). Also, while the book features a character named Leigh Hunt(er) as accustomed, but he is an important character and not a background note as in later Hunts.

* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Rather extreme example with Adrian Hunter, who is basically a NEET who explicitly only lives to party and get around.

* LoinCloth: The standard attire of Delphi's men is either this or shorts, depending on the scene. This isvaguely justified because they live under the sea and have to dive quite often, but it is notable that they don't bother with protective gear or even diving fins. Even Summer seems to favor the minimum amount of clothing possible while in Kanoli.

* ReallyGetsAround: Adrian Hunter is considered, either literally or figuratively, to be a nynphomaniac. Nonetheless she only lives to party, and is implied to be a {{Neet}} who hangs around with her father to have chances to get guys.

* TheVamp: Summer. Unlike most examples, she is succesful in seducing the hero, which is especially surprising given her very amateurish take on the job. [[spoiler:Only for falling in love with him, however.]]

''Pacific Vortex'' is an early novel by Creator/CliveCussler. It was published in 1983 as the sixth book in the Literature/DirkPittAdventures series, although under the premise of being the first Pitt book written by Cussler and thus the franchise's seminal episode. Cussler attributes its publishing to a great deal of pressure from his friends, family and publisher, and considers it somewhat of a curiosity among his works.

* CanonDiscontinuity: The events in the book are implied to have happened in BroadStrokes after Pitt's children reveal themelves in ''Valhalla Rising'', because Pitt and Summer never have sex in their limited screentime together in the book. If not, the storyline would gain [[ChildByRape completely different overtones]], as in every scene in which he could had gotten Summer pregnant, [[DudeShesLikeInAComa one of the two was unconscious all the time]]. One possibility out of two: [[spoiler: when Dirk carried Summer back to his hotel room and joked about raping her while she was out cold, he wasn't joking; or, alternately, when Dirk fell unconscious in Summer's room in the submerged island, she quickly raped him before alerting anyone.]]

* EyesOfGold: Delphi [[spoiler:and his father]]. It isn't clear whether they are real gold eyes or just contact lenses as Pitt says.

* SupervillainLair Delphi's Kanoli, an underwater mountain.

A young U.S. Air Force and National Underwater and Marine Agency officer named Dirk Pitt is enjoying a lazy day on a secluded Oahu beach at Ka'ena Point when he spots a bright yellow container just past the breakers. After catching it in a dangerous swim, Pitt discovers it is the last message of the USS ''Starbuck'', the Navy's last high-tech submarine, which disappeared on the sea in strange circumstances. After being revealed that the submarine fell prey of the "Pacific Vortex", an area of the ocean north of the Hawaiian Islands where ships have been disappearing for more than 30 years, Pitt will be involved in a government project to recover the submarine. He will have to face deep sea mysteries, ghosts of the past, strange intelligences, and worse than all, love.

Despite its doubtful canon status, the book was later welded to the series's continuity in the 2001 book ''Valhalla Rising''.

* AquaticMook: Kanoli mooks are an interesting example, as they are men surgically modified to be able to breathe underwater who wield small UsefulNotes/AirGuns and wear no more gear than green shorts.
* AmbiguousSituation: Pitt acusses Delphi of brainwashing his men into obedience, and later the baddie stares deeply at Pitt's eyes with his own yellow eyes in what Pitt calls hypnosis. It's difficult to say if Delphi was really attempting to hypnotize Pitt or he was just very angry and trying to psych him out.
* ArtificialGill: Delphi's mooks are surgically equipped with artifical gills invented by Moran's scientists, which allow them to breathe for a time underwater without heavier gear. The things are described as apparently small devices grafted to the sides of their chests.
* ArtisticLicenseBiology: Delphi's men carry their Roblemann artificial gills grafted to the sides of their ribcages. In real life, if it was needed to surgically attach such gadget to a human respiratory system, it would be smarter to place it in the user's neck, not in his torso. Not only due to the risks of pumping pure oxygen directly to the lungs, but also because a graft placed between the ribs would probably interfere with the chest muscle movement needed to breath.

* TheDragon: Though not on screen due to her low number of apparitions, it's assumed that Summer is Delphi's second in command. [[spoiler:At least until her HighHeelFaceTurn.]]
* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Despite its posterior release, this was the first Dirk Pitt story written by Cussler, and thus features a number of unusual elements compared to the posterior continuity. Instead of his classic Colt 45, Pitt uses an anachronistic Mauser C-96 of all things, while Giordino loses a pinkie, a scar that takes only one installment in the series to be forgotten. Also, the book features a character named Leigh Hunt(er), but he is an important character and not a background note as in later Hunts.

** In a ship matter, the ''Martha Ann'' was clearly the prototype of the ''Oregon'' in Cussler's mind. It only lacks her weapon system and magnetohydrodinamic engines.

* FingerInABarrel: Near the end, [[spoiler:Al Giordino]] [[{{Fingore}} sacrifices a pinkie]] to prevent [[spoiler:Delphi from shooting Dirk.]] This instance features both the real life and the TV effects of the trope: it destroys his finger (albeit in a unrealistically clean fashion), but also causes the gun to explode and kill the gunman.
* FromDressToDressing: After the last battle in the crumbling mountain, Pitt bandages Giordino's wounded hand with his own swimming trunks, reamining himself naked until they are rescued.
* GeneralRipper: Admiral Leigh Hunter is a naval example.
* HardDrinkingPartyGirl: Rather extreme example with Adrian Hunter, who is basically a NEET who only lives to party and get around.

* HoneyTrap: Summer, though Pitt notes that not a particulary well set one. Still, it is mostly successful, and it's only her lack of subtlety at the climax of her plan what foils it.
* HollywoodTactics: Both the bad and good guys fall on this. Kanoli's trademark strategy is creating artificial mist and sending an [[ZergRush enormously huge but otherwise poorly equipped contingent]] to board the enemy ships in the hope to subdue their crews by surprise and sheer numbers. At the end, they only have success in making the ''Martha Ann'' retreat because her crew, being barely better equipped and obviously much less numerous, cannot repel a boarding party of that size.

* LoinCloth: The standard attire of Delphi's men is either this or shorts. This is justified because they live under the sea and have to dive quite often, but it's notable that they don't bother with protective gear or even diving fins. Even Summer seems to favor the minimum clothing possible while in Kanoli.

* ThePlace

* SuspiciouslySimilarSubstitute: Burdette Denver to Gunn, which is explained because they are cousins.

* UnderwaterBase: Kanoli, though it is a more realistic example than most of fictional representations, as is essentially an ElaborateUndergroundBase which happens to be underwater.

* AquaticMook: Kanoli mooks are an interesting-looking example, as they are men surgically modified to be able to breathe underwater who wield small UsefulNotes/AirGuns and wear no more gear than green shorts.

* ArtisticLicenseBiology: Delphi's men carry their Roblemann artificial gills grafted to the sides of their ribcages. In real life, if it was needed to surgically attach such gadget to a human respiratory system, it would be smarter to place it in the user's neck, not in his torso. Not only because the risks of pumping pure oxygen directly to the lungs, but also because two implants between the ribs would probably interfere with the chest muscle movement needed to breath.
* AuthorAppeal: The sea, ancient archaeology, old cars, beautiful women, chances to wear little to no clothing... Yep, a Clive Cussler work.

* DesignatedGirlFight: Adrian Hunter and Summer have one [[spoiler:to remove the former from Summer's HoneyTrap on Pitt, or at least the guy she thinks Pitt is,]] though it happens entirely offscreen.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Despite its posterior release, this was the first Dirk Pitt story written by Cussler, and thus features a number of unusual elements compared to the posterior continuity. Instead of his classic Colt 45, Pitt uses an anachronistic Mauser C-96 of all things, while Giordino loses a pinkie, a scar that takes only one installment in the series to be forgotten.

* HollywoodTactics: Both the bad and good guys fall on this. Kanoli's trademark tactics are composed of creating artificial mist and sending an [[ZergRush enormously huge but otherwise poorly equipped contingent]] to board the enemy ships, hoping to subdue their crews by surprise and sheer numbers. At the end, they only have success in making the ''Martha Ann'' retreat because her crew, being barely better equipped and obviously much less numerous, cannot repel a boarding party of that size.

* OddlySmallOrganization: Inverted. For such a necessarily secretive organization like Delphi's men, they have [[WeHaveReserves quite impressive reserves]] stationed on Kanoli: only their first boarding party is composed by 200 guys. Where and how you can maintain such an army under the sea is brought as a point, but never answered comfortably.

* RedemptionEqualsDeath: Although [[spoiler:Summer ended up saving Pitt's life multiple times, she chose to die with her father at the end.]]

* ArtisticLicenseBiology: Delphi's men carry their Roblemann artificial gills grafted to the sides of their ribcages. In real life, if it was needed to surgically attach such gadget to a human respiratory system, it would be smarter to place it in the user's neck, not in his torso. Not only because the risks of pumping oxygen directly to the lungs, but also because two implants between the ribs would probably interfere with the chest muscle movement needed to breath.
* AuthorAppeal: The sea, ancient archaeology, old cars, beautiful women, chances to little to no clothing... Yep, a Clive Cussler work.

* CanonDiscontinuity: The events in the book are implied to have happened in BroadStrokes after Pitt's children reveal themelves in ''Valhalla Rising'', because Pitt and Summer never have sex in their limited screentime together in the book. If not, the storyline would gain [[ChildByRape completely different overtones]], as in every scene in which he could had gotten Summer pregnant, [[DudeShesLikeInAComa one of the two was unconscious all the time]]. One possibility out of two: [[spoiler: when Dirk carried Summer back to his hotel room and joked about raping her while she was out cold, he wasn't joking; or, alternately, when Dirk fell unconscious in Summers' room in the submerged island, she raped him before alerting anyone.]]

* HollywoodTactics: Both the bad and good guys fall on this. Kanoli's trademark tactics are composed of creating artificial mist and sending an [[ZergRush enormously huge but otherwise poorly equipped contingent]] to board the enemy ships, hoping that confusion and numbers alone are enough to subdue their crews. At the end, they only have success in making the ''Martha Ann'' retreat because her crew, being barely better equipped and obviously much less numerous, cannot repel a boarding party of that size.

* OddlySmallOrganization: Inverted. For such a necessarily secretive organization like Delphi's men, they have [[WeHaveReserves quite impressive reserves]] stationed on Kanoli: only their first boarding party is composed by 200 guys. Where and how you can maintain such an army under the sea is brought as a point, but never answered confortably.

* SacrificialLion: Liutenant Marsh.

* UnderwaterBase: Kanoli, though it is a more realistic example than most of fictional representations, as is esentially an ElaborateUndergroundBase which happens to be underwater.

* {{Cyborg}}: Downplayed. Delphi's mooks are surgically equipped with artifical gills invented by Moran's scientists, which allow them to breathe for a time underwater without heavier gear. The things are described as apparently small devices grafted to the sides of their chests.

''Raise the Titanic!'' is an early novel by Creator/CliveCussler. It was published in 1983 as the sixth book in the Literature/DirkPittAdventures series, although under the premise of being the first Pitt book written by Cussler and thus the franchise's seminal episode. Cussler attributes its publishing to a great deal of pressure from his friends, family and publisher, and considers it somewhat of a curiosity among his works.

Despite its doubtful canon status, the book was later welded to the series's continuity in the 2003 book ''Trojan Odyssey''.

* ArtisticLicenseBiology: Delphi's men carry their Roblemann artificial gills grafted to the sides of their ribcages. In real life, if it was needed to surgically attach such gadget to a human respiratory system, it would be smarter to place it in the user's neck, not directly in his lungs.

* BittersweetEnding: [[spoiler:Delphi and his ]]

* {{Cyborg}}: Downplayed. Delphi's mooks are surgically equipped with artifical gills invented by Moran's scientists, which allow them to breathe for a time underwater without heavier gear. The things are described as apparently small devices grafted to the sides of their chests, though it's probable the divers hold more machinery inside their ribcages.

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Despite its posterior release, this was the first Dirk Pitt story written by Cussler, and thus features a number of unusual elements compared to the posterior continuity. Instead of his classic Colt 45, Pitt uses an anachronistic Mauser C-96 of all things; Giordino loses a pinkie, a scar that only lasts an installment in the series to be forgotten.

* ThePlace

A young U.S. Air Force and National Underwater and Marine Agency officer named Dirk Pitt is enjoying a lazy day on a secluded Oahu beach at Ka'ena Point when he spots a bright yellow container just past the breakers. After catching it in a dangerous swim, Pitt discovers it is the last message of the USS ''Starbuck'', the Navy's last high-tech submarine, which disappeared on the sea in strange circumstances. After being revealed that the submarine fell prey of the "Pacific Vortex", an area of the ocean north of the Hawaiian Islands where ships have been disappearing for more than 30 years, Pitt will be involved in a government project to recover the submarine.

* {{Cyborg}}: Downplayed. Delphi's mooks are surgically equipped with artifical gills invented by Moran's scientists, which allow them to breathe for a time underwater without heavier gear. The things are described as small devices grafted to the sides of their chests, though they probably hold more machinery inside their ribcages.
* DesignatedGirlFight: Adrian Hunter and Summer have one off screen [[spoiler:to remove the former from Summer's HoneyTrap on Pitt, or at least the guy she thinks Pitt is.]]

* EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Despite its posterior release, this was the first Dirk Pitt story written by Cussler, and thus features a number of unusual elements compared to the late continuity. In one of the most egregious, instead of his classic Colt 45, Pitt uses an anachronistic Mauser C-96 of all things.

* FingerInABarrel: Near the end, [[spoiler:Al Giordino]] [[{{Fingore}} sacrifices a pinkie]] to [[spoiler:prevent Delphi from shooting Dirk.]]