Americans visiting Europe have long been used to finding a comforting version of their own junk culture waiting to greet them there. See “Pulp Fiction,” in which John Travolta’s character informs us that in France, they refer to a quarter-pounder as a “royale with cheese.”

So it is with the political thriller “Marseille,” a French Netflix production that had its global premiere on Thursday. It is royale-y cheesy proof that the most risible clichés of dark American cable and streaming drama can be exported as easily as fast food.

This eight-episode series, written by Dan Franck, is a game of spot-the-trope: the brooding, smoky title sequence (practically a parody of the one from “True Detective” Season 1), the cocaine-tooting protagonist (“Vinyl”), the ambitious young female web reporter (“House of Cards”), the carefully art-directed breasts (pick a show, really).

The story is straight political soap. Robert Taro (Gérard Depardieu), mayor of Marseille for 20 years, is ready to pass on power to his slick protégé, Lucas Barrès (Benoît Magimel). But Taro’s apprentice turns on him, colluding with the mob to scotch plans for Taro’s crowning achievement, a casino in the city’s Vieux-Port. Why? Because, Barrès sneers: “Real power isn’t given. It’s taken!” (Netflix offers the series with English dubbing or subtitles. Neither renders the writing any more original.)