Is there an easy way to unpack a Chrome extension in the Chrome Web store?

Question

Is there an easy way to view the source code of a chrome extension without having to install it?

There is no crx file, just the usual webstore url with the long string of random characters at the end.

Answer 1

Install Chrome extension source viewer to get a button at the Chrome Web store. This button allows you to download the extension in a zip file.
It also offers a built-in source viewer, so you don't have to extract the files yourself.

Screenshot:

Disclaimer: I wrote the extension.
If you want a bookmarklet which generates a wget command, see this answer.