No matter how many pieces there are in a puzzle, they can only fit together in so many ways. This is an apt metaphor for television, too. You can set all the different parts in motion in the show's first season, and there will be a finite number of ways they can all knock into each other. Even the most riveting characters can quickly play out their possibilities if they're not given fresh environments or interactions. 

That's all true even in the vast expanse of the wild, wild West. There are only so many times bandits can be brought to justice before we all think, "Hey, haven't we seen this before?"

So, by the time Bonanza hit its ninth season, it needed a light freshening up. There were plenty of great tales already told, and plenty still to come. But that core cast had shouldered the storytelling burden for so long, and were down a Cartwright after Pernell Roberts quit the show.

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Enter David Canary as "Candy" Canaday. His presence was no accident, and allowed the show's writers a little breathing room. Producer David Dortort elaborated in a 1967 interview with The San Francisco Examiner:

"The character will help introduce more rugged action and new story potential," said Dortort. "And don't be fooled by the name. Candy is as soft as granite boulder. He is an independent strong-willed loner who doesn't waste words when a fist will do the job."

Especially compared to the Cartwright clan, Candy was "unregimented and uninhibited," as explained by Dortort. "If he specializes in anything, it's the art of survival. The Cartwrights respect but distrust Candy— and the feeling is mutual."