I think that's definitely a part of it - like, I personally don't use the slur but I can at least see the angle there, and part of that is that the T-slur itself is still transgressive to say in society.

'Dolls' on the other hand feels like a way to take away any bite from existing by taking the first punch ourselves, and I see it so often go hand in hand with other transfem self-degradation that feels more like public self-shaming than actually reclaiming something. I definitely agree with the 'dependence' vibes, and I can see how it's probably a reaction to the treatment of transfems in the general media, but it feels like a step backwards - like a section of us feels the need to 'sell out'. I really dislike that it's a thing, and that it gets so much play in the culture.