@GrizzlayLeslay:
Ugh, I really hope they just skip 279 through 283. Save for the Strawhat specials they're all readily available in the collections.
You know what would be better? If they instead did this (though I sincerely doubt it):
S5V1: 264-274 (11 episodes)
S5V2: 275-278, 284-290, 293-294 (13 episodes)
S5V3: 295-302, 304-309 (12 episodes)
S5V4: 310-322 (13 episodes)
S5V5: 323-335 (13 episodes)
Instead of S5V6, a Strawhat Special Collection: Specials 1-4, Episodes 291, 292, 303, and 336, the Strawhat Theater segments. In an even more perfect world, they'd get the rights to dub that really early pilot featuring Luffy, Zoro, and Nami that was released in '98 (I think?) and include that. Bam, all the specials are taken care of and everything except the movies up to this point have been dubbed.
I doubt this will happen but it'd be really nice to see Funimation keep the specials separate as they really ruined the flow of the Enies Lobby arc.
Don't we wish. Here's the thing, though. All those specials. That would be more than 13 episodes worth of content, wouldn't it? Some of the specials are over 23 minutes, and all of them require a new set of voice casting. It seems like a tremendous trouble for the product. I wish they did this though. Skipping the episodes and including them in this set would be great.
My other remedy would just be to make it a 15 or so episode set, but I guess that number doesn't really work with the other ones.
I've never heard of any intention of dubbing the specials, only the movies, and it doesn't seem like they're moving back in time with the movies, only forward to new ones. I'd love for you to be right, though. It would be fantastic. Email them your suggestion. :P