[Larry Lucido]

Hey kids, it's time to play What's Scientifically Wrong With This Picture!

1) The star wouldn't have a tail.

2) (Just guessing here) The trajectory should probably be in the same plane as the rest of the galaxy.

3) If Al Gore was president, this never would have happened.

[Ichneumon]

1) The star wouldn't have a tail.

Bingo! There would be absolutely no reason for it to have "streamers" of gas coming off it, no matter how fast it was going through the vacuum of space.

2) (Just guessing here) The trajectory should probably be in the same plane as the rest of the galaxy.

Nah -- it could have gotten flung off in any direction with respect to the plane of the galaxy.